Wisconsin senator Russ Feingold expressed his unequivocal support for marriage equality in early April after being asked about it at one of the Democrat’s regular listening sessions in his home state. Back in Washington on April 4, he released a statement arguing that the government should offer gay couples the same marriage rights as straight couples, but that churches and other religious institutions shouldn’t be required to marry gays. A constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage and civil unions is on the Wisconsin ballot this year, providing Feingold with a good opportunity to clarify his position. Feingold isn’t the first U.S. senator to come out for full marriage equality—he joins Republican Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island and Democrats Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts and Ron Wyden of Oregon—but he is the first major contender for president to do so.
What exactly were you asked at that listening session in
Wisconsin that prompted you to announce your
support for same-sex marriage?
A young man stood up and said, “Senator
Feingold, my girlfriend and I are here and we both are
advocates for the rights of gays and lesbians. We
would like to know your position on gay marriage.”
That’s what he said.
So, why do this now?
I just never thought it was my role until now to
weigh in on that. What I took my responsibility to be
from the first day I became a state senator to right
now is to oppose attempts to discriminate against gay
people, and that’s exactly what I’ve
done. I was one of only 14 senators to vote against
the Defense of Marriage Act, I opposed “don’t
ask, don’t tell,” I’ve been the
most active member of the Senate Judiciary Committee
opposing the [proposed federal] constitutional amendment. So
I thought my role, instead of holding forth on my
personal views, was to do my job, which is to stop
these mean-spirited attempts to single out gays and
lesbians in this way.
Including Wisconsin’s proposed ban on same-sex marriage?
My state now is considering a constitutional amendment
that I will personally vote on about whether we want
to enshrine in our constitution this form of
discrimination. To me, that [listening session] was a moment
to say, “Not only do I oppose this, but as a citizen
of Wisconsin, I want you to know that I think this is
completely inconsistent with our state’s
progressive tradition.” The subject has been coming
up in the last couple of years at my town meetings,
and I have always looked at people and said,
“You know, I think our society is better off if two
people who love each other are together and are
married.” I’ve looked right at them and
said it. So I just decided to take the next step, given
what’s going on in my state, and make it
absolutely clear that I oppose this amendment, that
this really is a civil rights issue to me.
As you point out, you have been an ally for gays and
lesbians for some time now.
Oh, yeah, very strong, very consistently, very
proud—25 years of consistent record.
It’s one of the things I’m most proud of,
because to me this is one of the real cutting-edge
issues in our society: whether we’re going to
be kind and decent to each other and be a community, or
whether we’re going to try to divide ourselves. To me
this is a real test for our society.
Do you think the proposed amendment in Wisconsin is just
an effort to drive conservative voters to the
polls, or is this how people there really feel?
Well, I’m hopeful to defeat the amendment. I do
think that some who support the amendment are sincere
in their feelings about gay marriage. I think others
are using it as a political tool to defeat our governor in
part. That’s pretty clear, in terms of the timing of
it. Frankly, some on the Right in this country and
elements of the Republican Party have ruthlessly
exploited anxiety about gays and lesbians for political
purposes, and I think that is absolutely wrong in America.
It’s one of the things that I most resent in
American politics, and I’m going to fight it
every step of the way.
Would you introduce legislation in the Senate legalizing
same-sex marriage?
I want to work with groups in the gay and lesbian
community and find out what strategies they want to
use. First and foremost is to defeat these referendums
and to defeat the constitutional amendment in June
[being brought to a vote by the Senate’s Republican
leadership]. Once that is done, I am eager to hear
what people think we ought to do next. This is not
something where I feel like I can just go off as a lone
ranger. This is something that is of great concern to many
gay and lesbian individuals, and I want to hear from
them what they would like done. What I’m
hearing right now is, “Let’s make sure these
constitutional amendments don’t pass.” But I
do see this as becoming a civil rights issue over
time, not just a states’ rights issue.
Are you hopeful about the movement for marriage equality?
Oh, yes, I believe this will be won, and I think it may
be won as an issue earlier than people think. I
don’t think we should underestimate the
difficulty of it, because it goes against some very
traditional understandings in our culture, but I think
it’s the wave of the future. As people get to
know gay and lesbian friends, it just becomes untenable
to say that they cannot be married. It’s like, how
can you say that to a friend? To me it’s just
an outrage.
Speaking of gay and lesbian friends, do you have any?
Many.
Have they personally asked you to fight for their rights?
I was with a group at a dinner the other night who have
been friends over the years, and I was so pleased to
show up at this large event in Madison and turn to
them and say, “Guess what I’m going to
do.” [Laughs] They’re obviously
very pleased that I’ve taken this step, but it
was not at all because friends were pushing me. It was just
really a matter of my own personal conscience that led
me to do this. But I am pleased that they now know
that there’s no doubt in my mind that they
should be able to have the same privileges that I do.
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