Rabbinical Student Heads Up the Fight For Gay Marriage in New Jersey
By Beth Schwartzapfel Published December 23, 2009, issue of January 01, 2010.
Steven Goldstein jokes that his office in suburban New Jersey is “like the Jewish Museum of Montclair.” A sage-looking rabbi peers down from a lithograph on one wall, and a print of Theodor Herzl hangs from another. There are a Hebrew movie poster and a mezuza.
If You Will It?: Steven Goldstein in his New Jersey office, with a print of Theodor Herzl on the wall. Goldstein, however, doesn’t work for a Jewish organization; he is the founder, chair and CEO of Garden State Equality, the primary advocacy group now pushing for marriage for gay men and lesbians in New Jersey. At the moment, the organization is in the midst of an intense political race to pass a gay marriage bill before the current New Jersey governor, Democrat Jon Corzine, leaves office January 19, 2010; Corzine’s successor, Republican Chris Christie, has said that he will veto any such bill.