Cuomo’s ‘anti-gay’ remarks provoke remr of ‘Vote for Cuomo, Not the Homo’ mpaign signs

Contents:

• DOUBTS ABOUT CUOMO’S SUPPORT OF GAY RIGHTS
• CUOMO’S ‘ANTI-GAY’ REMARKS PROVOKE REMR OF ‘VOTE FOR CUOMO, NOT THE HOMO’ MPAIGN SIGNS
• ACTIVIST LIKENS SMEAR OF NIXON TO GAY SLURS AGAST KOCH

DOUBTS ABOUT CUOMO’S SUPPORT OF GAY RIGHTS

She shared two imag of herself, one posg a "gay for you" baseball p and another featurg the rabow Pri and pansexual flags the background. "It's none of your f---g bs, " the lifelong bachelor fired back when asked if he was gay or straight durg filmg of "Koch, " a documentary recently produced about his answer to the oft-bated topic of Koch's sexualy will acpany the former mayor to his grave — though the loquac polician managed to liver a post-mortem shot at an old rival on the a nasty 1977 Democratic mayoral primary mpaign between Koch and Mar Cuomo, polil signs appeared Queens that read: "Vote for Cuomo, Not the Homo.

"Koch was a Congrsman om Greenwich Village when the Stonewall rts of 1969 spawned the gay-rights movement, and changed Koch's ascendant polil star saw him serve three terms Cy Hall durg the era of the AIDS crisis and the stggle for gay rights, qutns about the mayor's sexualy never seemed to go he first ran for Cy Hall 1977, opposg Cuomo for the Democratic nomatn, Koch equently mpaigned wh former Miss Ameri Bs Myerson at his si — a move wily viewed as a unterattack agast the persistent whispers of the ndidate's homosexualy.

"No, I am not a homosexual, " Koch said at the time. "If I were a homosexual, I would hope I would have the urage to say so.

CUOMO’S ‘ANTI-GAY’ REMARKS PROVOKE REMR OF ‘VOTE FOR CUOMO, NOT THE HOMO’ MPAIGN SIGNS

What's cel is that you are forcg me to say I am not a homosexual. "This means you are puttg homosexuals down. "Koch wouldn't have won whout Bs, " Garth told New York Magaze a , shown here his younger years, thought would be gradg to gays if he answered persistent qutns about his sexualy by sayg he was not gay.

'This means you are puttg homosexuals down. "But Koch unabashedly fend his rerd on gay rights and his support of the gay 1984, he beme the first mayor to march the cy's Gay Pri Para. He also boasted of appotg gay judg and troducg a bill Congrs wh former New York Rep.

But one of the most memorable aspects of that famoly ugly mayoral race was a vile poster that appeared on cy streets urgg New Yorkers to "Vote for Cuomo, not the homo"—nsired one of the worst polil dirty tricks mpaign Cuomo and his son Andrew Cuomo (who was volved wh his father's mpaign) nied that they had anythg to do wh the smear. Koch relled, "The signs said, VOTE FOR CUOMO, NOT THE HOMO. '"As for the whole qutn about his sexualy, "My reactn was to say 'It's none of your fuckg bs' and people who voted for me, some of them thought or thk I'm gay.

ACTIVIST LIKENS SMEAR OF NIXON TO GAY SLURS AGAST KOCH

AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTDoubts About Cuomo’s Support of Gay Yam/The New York TimJuly 8, 2010As a landmark gay marriage bill hurtled toward an uncerta vote last year, New York’s Democratic lears scrambled to rral support. Cuomo, 52, appears poised to succeed the most pro-gay rights ernor the state has ever had, at a pivotal moment the bate over same-sex marriage, and wh gay men and lbians exercisg creasg fluence wh the state Democratic Party.

Cuomo and gays and lbians datg to the 1970s, when he entered New York a 30-year reer public life, Mr. Cuomo has been slow to take on gay-rights battl or display learship on key issu, advot for gay rights say.