NY Town Clerk Quits Over Gay Marriage Law

A New York town clerk has quit her post so she won’t have to sign same-sex marriage licenses, which she objects to on religious grounds. “The Bible clearly teaches that God created marriage between male and female as a divine gift that preserves families and cultures,” Laura Fotusky wrote in her letter of resignation. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said she didn’t have much choice given her beliefs, the Buffalo News reports.

“If you can't enforce the law, then you shouldn't be in that position,” Cuomo said. To enforce laws, they “would have to be paramount ... to your religious beliefs,” he noted. “You can't have a system in this state where people enforce the laws that their religions say are OK to enforce.” Fotusky will leave her post as clerk in the town of Barker three days before the law takes effect July 24, she said. (More gay marriage New York stories.)