Vote No November 7 on the Constitutional Amendment

Wisconsin has a chance to stand up and make a difference.

On November 7th Wisconsin voters will have an opportunity to vote on the proposed constitutional amendment to define marriage as between one man and one woman. This is despite the fact that this is already established by Wisconsin law. The amendment goes further in stating

"Only a marriage between one man and one woman shall be valid or recognized as a marriage in this state. A legal status identical or substantially similar to that of marriage for unmarried individuals shall not be valid or recognized in this state."

Therefore it not only prevents marriage between people of the same sex, but goes a long way toward preventing any legal domestic partner arrangement. This has very far-reaching consequences, and from the wording of the amendment, is clearly intentional.

Although supporters of this amendment claim that it is intended to defend marriage, it goes far beyond this and intends to legally discriminate against gay couples by denying them the same legal rights as heterosexual couples. If you believe that people should all have the same legal rights, you must vote against this amendment, which seeks to legalize discrimination and stigma attached to a substantial minority of the citizens of our state. People who have committed relationships need to have a means of legally defending that status so that they can enjoy the same rights and privileges as anyone else. Recent decisions in some states have allowed discrimination against gay people in domestic violence cases, and as these hate-mongering constitutional changes spread throughout the country things will only become worse. Please read the attached report from The Human Rights Campaign Foundation before making up your mind on whether this amendment is a good idea. See for yourself what the consequences of these amendments have been in other states.

Personally I am flummoxed by the whole notion of "defending marriage". I've been married for some time now and don't understand what is threatening about allowing gay people to make the same commitment that my wife and I have chosen to make. I would hope that making a commitment to a long-term loving relationship is good for our society no matter who the person is making that decision.

But whether you support the notion of gay marriage or not, this amendment clearly goes overboard in attempting to lock discrimination into our constitution. All of us in Wisconsin deserve better than this.

The Fair Wisconsin Campaign is working very hard to prevent this amendment from passing, and they currently have coordinators in every Wisconsin county. If you believe that Wisconsin has a tradition of fairness and tolerance that is worth upholding, please go to their web site, find your county coordinator, and help to prevent this amendment from passing in November. Volunteer, help campaign, donate money, or just talk about this with your friends. Write letters, or have a speaker from Fair Wisconsin at your club or church. Buy a T-shirt, or get a pack of buttons and hand them out to your friends. Let's not let Wisconsin join the ranks of the other states that have spoken out for promoting discrimination and injustice as a core value of their state.