Now that same-sex marriage is in the hands of the New York state legislature, it’s crucial to convince the Senate’s majority leader, Joseph Bruno, a Republican, to support a same-sex marriage bill. In order to become law, of course, a bill needs to pass both houses. While the state Assembly is controlled by Democrats, the Senate is controlled by Republicans, and Joe Bruno is their leader. In the past he has said that he opposes same-sex marriage. The senate majority leader controls what bills are even brought to a vote, so without his support, same-sex marriage goes nowhere.

He’s apparently changed his mind on things before – at first he opposed SONDA, the Sexual Orientation Non-Discrimination Act, but eventually he supported it – so he needs to be convinced that same-sex marriage, or at least the benefits thereof, is important.

Here is Senator Bruno’s contact information. The phone number of his Albany office is (518) 455-3191. You can call his office and express support for a same-sex marriage bill. Better yet, you can call his office and ask what Senator Bruno plans to do to support gay couples that already have children. Yesterday’s court decision ignored the reality that thousands of same-sex couples already have families. Ask the senator how he plans to protect those families and tell his office why same-sex couples deserve the same legal rights as opposite-sex couples. If you agree, that is. If you don’t agree, then you should.

And while Bruno’s support is necessary, it’s not enough. If you live in New York State, you should contact your own state senator. Find your senator by zip code.

And express your opinion. Senators’ offices keep records of these things, you know. A phone call may seem silly or fruitless, but it really does help.