David G. Marcus
City Council
El Paso, Texas,
Dec. 2, 2014

We come together today in a spirit of cooperation and compromise, respect and courtesy, calling upon the rules of civility to guide us.

As we look around this chamber, we are reminded that in our differences lie our strengths.

We are black, white, Hispanic, Asian and Native American. We are Catholic, Protestant, Baptist, Jew, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Humanist, Wiccan, Pagan, Atheist, Agnostic and unaffiliated.

Some of us live our lives in the certainty of our faith; others of us are still looking for answers, or have found them in our common human struggles. We are straight, gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender, with and without disabilities, young and old and everything in between.

We don't all think the same way. Many of us hold very differing views on topics that are important to us. Our political views range from liberal to conservative and some of us are a bit of both.

But we all agree and know that personal beliefs, regardless of how strongly we hold them, are ours alone.

Yet, as we gather here together, we are linked by our common humanity, our shared heritage and our mutual desire to do what is best for the citizens of El Paso.
Our city has a long history of saying no to hate and bigotry, and as we move forward, we remember the difficult decisions of our former leaders. Let us continue to build on their legacy.

David Marcus is president and co-founder of Join Us for Justice, the El Paso chapter of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, and is managing partner of Marcus, Fairall, Bristol + Co., a certified public accounting firm. Join Us for Justice works "to educate the public about the dangers of faith-based legislation and the consequences of breaching the line between church and state, and to serve as a contact for those who seek information and expertise regarding separation issues."