Universally beloved couple, Bert and Ernie from Sesame Street, have come forward to talk to the press about the recent developments in the controversial political arena of gay rights and gay marriage. Both actors are most well-known on the television show “Sesame Street”, filmed on location at 123 Sesame Street in New York, New York, where Bert and Ernie share a basement apartment together in real life. We’ve watched them stay together through almost everything, battling their very different points of view and venting their frustrations at one another. The one thing that never changes is their affection for one another. Their relationship has remained strong for close to 40 years now, though for quite some time, representatives of the show denied that there was any intimate involvement between the two actors. “We think it’s about time that we had an opportunity to express the solidarity of our relationship,” stated Bert in a recent interview at the Proposition 8 protest in NY. They recently exchanged vows symbolically at the 2008 Chicago gay pride parade. “It was a happy day for us both,” said Ernie, “But we’d very much like to take our longstanding, committed relationship to the next level. We don’t really think it is that much to ask for a couple that’s been together for almost 40 years to be granted the privilege - no, the right - of marriage. We can’t even file a joint tax return, get joint insurance, dictate one another’s funeral arrangements, make medical decisions, have “next of kin” status, get estate and gift tax benefits, or adopt. The list is even longer than that… and after almost 40 years together, I think we’ve proven ourselves worthy of the title. After all, we‘re people with feelings, too.” Alas, Bert and Ernie are currently unable to marry in New York State. David Dinkins, mayor of Sesame Street since 1992, created a registry in January of 1993 to let gay and straight couples register as domestic partners. This allowed city workers to get unpaid leave to care for their children, and visitation rights with registered domestic partners at municipal hospitals and city jails. “Piece of paper or not, we’ll take it,” said Bert, referring to the couple’s immediate registration as domestic partners thereafter. “I want to take every step of life I can with Ernie, and I want to include this man in my life as much as possible.” New York State has interesting laws regarding same-sex marriages; if a marriage is performed outside of New York State, and the couple returns to New York State to live, their marriage is considered valid within New York State, even though same-sex marriage is illegal in the state itself. Confused? So are our good friends down on 123 Sesame. Big Bird made a statement earlier this week, publicly announcing his interest in seeing our country take the next step in equal rights. “I just don’t see why we’re so behind on this issue,” Big Bird said. “I mean, all of these other countries, including our neighbor, Canada, are on board with this revolutionary step toward freedom and we’re supposed to be the free country, aren’t we?” Since New York State law prohibits Bert and Ernie from committing to one another within the state proper, they’ve decided to take a trip to the very first country to ever have legalized gay marriage: the Netherlands. “It will be a proud day when we can step foot into the beautiful place that started the landmark civil rights movement in 2001 for gay men and women everywhere. I can’t wait to thank that wonderful country for believing in love - love like mine and Ernie’s. And when we return home to New York, we will be recognized as legally married within our home state.” Their wedding date is scheduled for early February, sometime around Valentine’s Day. “This will be a day we’ll never forget. We’ve waited long enough. Now it’s time to do something about it. Maybe someday our country will feel the same way.”
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