Westchester
County in New York will recognize same-sex marriages
performed in states and countries that allow them under an
executive order signed on Wednesday night by county
executive Andrew Spano. The order makes Westchester
the first county in the state to recognize same-sex
marriages, the Associated Press reports.
Spano received a
standing ovation as he read the order on Wednesday
night at a meeting of gay groups. The effect of the order is
to give married gay couples the same county privileges
as heterosexual couples, such as the right to buy
family passes to county parks and the right to seek
emergency housing as a family. "I don't see why people, just
because they're the same sex, shouldn't have the same
benefits," Spano told the AP on Thursday.
The order does
not require towns and villages within the county to
recognize the marriages, and it does not help same-sex
couples obtain state or federal privileges. It applies
only to couples who were married in a state or country
where same-gender marriages are legally performed.
(The Advocate)