Representing iconic gay-heavy neighborhoods of Brooklyn and Manhattan, Congressman Jerrold Nadler was an early proponent of gay rights and fighting HIV. As bullish as the political veteran can be, he also has an encouraging optimism about the prospect of national marriage equality. He discusses that, his early showdown with Newt Gingrich, and what needs to happen to get antiretroviral drugs to people with HIV.
The Advocate: You represent several areas with a heavy concentration of gay and lesbian constituents. I'm wondering how proactive the gay community in your district is. Have they influenced the bills that you've involved yourself in?
Rep. Jerrold Nadler: I have a very interesting district. It probably the largest district with the most openly gay and lesbian people in the country. On the other hand, I also represent Borough Park, which carries all the Hasidim
. I don't know if you know who the Hasidim are, but they have the same social attitudes as Jerry Falwell.
But my district has been historically active. Stonewall is this district. When I was starting out, on the Upper West Side, I was a district leader for my Democratic club. We had two gay male and two lesbian female leaders. We were the only Democratic club around with gay leaders. The local gay community is still quite active. They were especially mobilized this year on the gay marriage bill in Albany. But they were also big supporters behind and the repeal of the , the Respect for Marriage Act. Some thought it was going too far, and they thought it might be more appropriate to ask for more obtainable goals, but I feel strongly that we should start the fight for . It's a very straightforward bill that gives basic rights to people.
How did you become such a champion on an essential but no-frills bill like the UAFA?
I didn't see it as a major bill in the sense of affecting a lot of people but I thought was terribly unfair, and current laws treat people with gratuitous cruelty. I figured, what percentage of the population is gay, and what percentage of that population also falls in love with a foreigner? Obviously, it's rather low, so I figured a small percentage of people would be outwardly supportive of this law. I didn't expect to have a major campaign, but I was surprised by the amount of support that's come in. Forty thousand couples in the U.S. are affected by this. The bill is very important because it's about keeping families together.
http://www.advocate.com/Health_and_Fitness/Here_To_Inspire/Rep_Jerrold_Nadler_The_Optimistic_Fighter/
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