Friday, December 25, 2009

Haters Are Pushing to Overturn Iowa Marriage Equality

Like a toxic plague, the anti-gay forces are relentless in their efforts to strip LGBT citizens of the civil legal rights. Now, the militant theocrats are focusing on making an attempt to repeal marriage equality in Iowa. It is truly difficult at times not to hate these people - especially the ones like Maggie Gallagher who are enriching themselves in the process of spreading homophobic hate and making a farce out of America's supposed promise of freedom of religion for all. From my perspective, these haters are no different that the segregationists who sought to keep black Americans as second class citizens, often using the Bible as one of their justifications for bigotry. Some things and some people seem to never change - they always want someone to hate and denigrate. I sincerely hope that their efforts fail and that Iowa upholds its historic record of being far ahead of the rest of the nation in upholding the rights of ALL citizens, not just the rights of religious extremists. Here are some highlights from the Advocate:
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Iowa marriage equality foes are ramping up pressure on state legislators to support a constitutional ban on gay marriage.
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The Iowa Family Policy Council’s Bryan English told the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier that the group is asking 150 state lawmakers where they stand on a ballot measure similar to California’s Proposition 8 and Maine’s Question 1 — both of which stripped same-sex couples of state marriage rights. The group also intends to hold a “two days for marriage” rally next month in Des Moines.
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A proposed constitutional amendment has to be approved by the general assemblies in two consecutive sessions before it goes to voters.
If the legislature does not act on the matter in 2010, the earliest the amendment could be before Iowan voters would be 2013 or 2014.
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However, state house and senate leaders have stated their opposition to a gay marriage ban and said they do not plan to take up a resolution on the amendment next year.
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No doubt the haters are stepping up their pace because they realize that the longer same sex marriage continue to occur with no adverse effect on society, the more difficult it will be to overturn The Iowa Supreme Court's ruling that specifically linked the anti-gay agenda with religion and ruled that the state could not impose only one religious view on all citizens. As for Bryan English, he's likely to be a self-hating closet case who has transferred his self-hatred to normal LGBT citizens.

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