Sen. Russ Feingold said Tuesday he supports giving gays and lesbians the right to marry, becoming the fourth U.S. senator to take that position, according to a gay-rights advocacy group.
Feingold, D-Wis., issued a statement saying he was asked about his views on the subject at a listening session with constituents Sunday night in Kenosha, Wis.
In an interview Tuesday with the Associated Press, he said he decided to express his support for gay marriage at the session in response to what he called a "mean-spirited" Wisconsin constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage and civil unions, which will appear on the state ballot in November.
"I will be voting against the harsh amendment that's been proposed in Wisconsin, and I thought it was an appropriate occasion to indicate my feeling that if two people care enough about each other to get married, that it probably is a positive thing for society," he said.
"Gay and lesbian people in our country are fighting a mean-spirited movement to harm them and to discriminate against them," he added. "I stand with them against that movement, and I'm proud to stand with them."
Little by little the tide is turning. Churches that don't want to perform gay marriages shouldn't have to. But same-sex couple should be allowed to have civil unions with full legal rights and the opportunity to be married in religious ceremonies in churches that welcome them. Feingold's statement helps move us closer to that day.
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