BRADDOCK, Pa. — The mayor of Braddock performed the first gay marriage in Allegheny County despite a state law that prohibits it.
John Kandray and Bill Gray were married Monday night by Mayor John Fetterman. Kandray and Gray said they’ve been together for 11 years.
“We’ve been in a relationship and for most of the time, (getting married) wasn’t a possibility,” Kandray said.
Fetterman said the state’s defense of marriage act is unjust and he was happy to marry the couple -- who obtained a marriage license in Montgomery County.
A county clerk there has been issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples, despite the state law banning gay marriage and a lawsuit filed by Gov. Tom Corbett’s office.
“We said if we can do this close to home, let’s do it. So we made the drive and heard Mayor Fetterman would marry anyone with a valid marriage license, and that’s what we have,” Kandray said. “This is our standing up for ourselves.”
“They’re the stars. They’re the heroes. They’re the ones that had the courage to step up,” said Fetterman. "I've been on record expressing my support for same sex marriage for quite a while.”
The ACLU is challenging Pennsylvania’s gay marriage ban.
"If a couple as kind and nice as them aren't allowed to be married, there's something fundamentally wrong with that,” Fetterman said.
WPXI
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