How Can You Fight For Marriage Equality?
Below are some effective organizations with carefully crafted measures supportive of same-gender civil marriage. From the comfort of your own home start fighting! (Click on the logos to access the action alerts.)
First though, be sure to sign the "Million For Marriage" petition by clicking here.
 |
Freedom To Marry |
 |
Human Rights Campaign |
 |
Lambda Legal |
 |
Marriage Equality USA |
 |
The Task Force |
 |
People For the American Way |
 |
PetitionSite.com (DNC) |
 |
Soulforce |
What
the Bible really says about marriage...
1.
Marriage shall consist of a union between one man and one or more women
(Gen. 29: 17 - 28; II Sam. 3: 2 - 5).
2. Marriage shall not impede a man's right to take concubines in
addition to his wife or wives (II Sam. 5: 13; I Kings 11: 3; II Chron. 11:
21).
3. A marriage shall be considered valid only if the wife is a virgin.
If the wife is not a virgin, she shall be executed (Deut. 22: 13 - 21).
4. Marriage of a believer and a non-believer shall be forbidden (Gen.
24: 3; Num. 25: 1 - 9; Ezra 9: 12; Neh. 10: 30).
5. Since marriage is for life, divorce shall not be permitted (Deut
22: 19; Mark 10: 9).
6. If a married man dies without children, his brother shall marry the
widow. If he refuses to marry his brother's widow or deliberately does
not give her children, he shall pay a fine of one shoe and be otherwise
punished in a manner to be determined by law (Gen. 38: 6 - 10; Deut. 25: 5 -
10).
This should clear up all the confusion about the "sacred" institution of
marriage.
Adapted; compiler unknown.
Reflect upon this...
On January 6, 1959 Mildred and Richard Loving, a black woman and a white man who had been married in Washington, D.C., and then returned to Virginia, were sentenced to one year in jail with a 25 year suspended sentence.
They challenged the law prohibiting interracial marriage. The case went to the Supreme Court, which overturned the Virginia law and determined that the right to marry is a civil right guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution.
Keep the faith! Keep up the fight!
Contributed by Ms. Sharon Messina.
Oh (racist and homophobic) Delaware!
For an insightful discussion of gay civil marriage in the context of Delaware's bleak history of racial bigotry, read what Al Mascitti wrote in his March 14, 2004 News Journal column:
Effort to ban
gay marriages keeps Del. on the cutting edge of bigotry
By AL MASCITTI
03/14/2004
If Republican state Sen. John Still's proposal to amend the state Constitution to ban gay marriages and civil unions seems mean-spirited and bigoted, realize that he's following a proud Delaware tradition of intolerance of minorities.
To many people, homosexuality constitutes the next frontier of civil rights. If they're right, state lawmakers have a dubious history to live down.
Thanks to its position as a slaveholding state that never seceded from the union - vacillation is another proud Delaware tradition - Delaware was the last bastion of the Peculiar Institution in the land.
As First State history buffs know, Delaware didn't see fit to ratify the 13th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution - the one that outlawed slavery - until 1901, 36 years after it became the law of the land.
That reluctance was no aberration, either. In 1868, the United States adopted the 14th Amendment, guaranteeing equal protection for all races under the law. The Delaware General Assembly voted against it.
In 1870, the United States added the 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, guaranteeing black citizens (black males, at least) the right to vote. Preserving its perfect record, the General Assembly voted against that one, too. And, despite Delaware's proximity and economic ties to the Northeast, the state's Jim Crow laws stood until 1963.
It's clear that Delawareans don't part with their prejudices lightly. In fact, the decision in 1901 to ratify those three amendments helped split the Democratic Party in the state so badly that Republicans took firm control for the next 35 years.
Senate Democrats should keep that in mind as they ponder whether to bring Still's measure to the floor for debate. Though they're badly outnumbered in the state House, they control all but a handful of statewide offices, as well as the state Senate. But they are not an ideologically unified party.
Downstate Democrats are typically more conservative than upstate Republicans, especially on social issues, which means Republicans could use gay marriage as a wedge. Considering that the growth in minority populations spells trouble for the GOP in the long term, I'm sure some of the party's deep thinkers believe it's worth a shot.
At the very least, Still's proposal should help him in what could be a tough re-election campaign against Democrat Brian Bushweller, a member of Sen. Tom Carper's staff. In Still's north Dover district, staking out a conservative position shouldn't hurt him a bit.
Considering the recent backlash against gay marriage, even in such liberal bastions as California and Massachusetts, Still would seem to be riding a wave of popular sentiment. Conservative Christians seem especially certain to reward politicians who rail against what they see as threats to their way of life.
For those who cite majority sentiment as justification for denying rights to gays, it should be noted that history isn't always kind to those who do what the majority demands at any given moment.
As anyone familiar with the story as told in Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ" could attest, the crucifixion of Jesus enjoyed popular support at the time.
Destroying marriage?
Ronald Reagan divorced the mother of two of his children to marry Nancy, who bore him a daughter only 7 months after the wedding.
Bob Dole divorced his child's mother, who had nursed him through the long recovery from his war wounds.
Newt Gingrich divorced his wife who was dying of cancer.
Dick Armey, former House Majority Leader: divorced.
Phil Gramm of Texas: divorced.
John Engler of Michigan: divorced.
Pete Wilson, former governor of California: divorced.
George Will: divorced.
Lauch Faircloth, former senator: divorced.
Rush Limbaugh: Limbaugh and his current wife Marta have 6 marriages and 4 divorces between them.
Bob Barr of Georgia: Barr had been married 3 times before he had the audacity as representative to author and push the "Defense of Marriage Act." The joke making the rounds on Capitol Hill was, "Bob, which marriage are you defending?"
Alfonse D'Amato, former senator of New York: divorced.
Sen. John Warner of Virginia: once married to Liz Taylor, divorced.
George Allen, former governor of Virginia: divorced.
Henry Kissinger: divorced.
Helen Chenoweth of Idaho: divorced.
Sen. John McCain of Arizona: divorced.
John Kasich of Ohio: divorced.
Susan Molinari of New York, Republican National Convention Keynote Speaker: divorced.
Gay people would destroy the institution of marriage? The "righteous right" is doing a fine job without anyone's help!
Adapted.
Hyphenation Made Easy!
Even though same-gender couples cannot yet legally marry in Delaware (or create a civil union or even obtain state employee domestic partnership benefits), more and more of us are opting to demonstrate the seriousness of our relationships by legally combining our surnames. The process is extremely easy, the cost is minimal, and the satisfaction is great! No attorney is necessary: the process is designed for a couple to represent themselves.
Step 1. Download/print the information/application packet for your county of residence at http://courts.delaware.gov/How%20To/Change%20Your%20Name. Both persons may change their names on the same application: there is no need to waste an extra $50 filing fee for filling out 2 applications.
Step 2. The couple must announce their intentions to change their names in one of the approved newspapers listed in the packet on 3 consecutive weeks. That is, whether a daily or a weekly newspaper, only 3 legal announcements are required. (Hint: Compare prices among the newspapers.)
Step 3. After receiving certification from the newspaper that the announcement ran on 3 consecutive weeks, one person must take the application, the newspaper certification and a method of payment to the Court of Common Pleas office in your county of residence. This will get the process started and set the date and time for your court appearance. (Hint: Security in the courthouses may forbid you to carry a cell phone, PDA, etc. Leave anything like that at home or in the car.)
Step 4. On the day of the hearing, the couple should consider taking off at least a half day: the hearing itself typically takes less than 10 minutes, but there is some waiting both before and after.
Step 5. Make a number of copies of the court order for giving to various entities (see Step 6 below) but safeguard the original signed and notarized document just as you would a will or property title.
Step 6. Take the court order changing your names to your Social Security office. (Hint: Locate your nearest Social Security office at http://www.ssa.gov/locator.) Social Security will send you new Social Security cards within 1 week. DMV, most employers, credit card companies, etc. will not update your records with your new names until you have your new Social Security card in your possession. Update the U.S. Postal Service, magazine subscriptions, utility companies, family members, friends, etc. (Hint: In some cases this will present opportunities to discuss your relationship, same-gender marriage or other issues with interested persons.)
Notes: Hyphenation of surnames to reflect a same-gender relationship has had a legal Delaware precedent since 1995 (see Timeline page). With that legal precedent and an increasing number of subsequent hyphenating same-gender Delaware couples, a judge's homophobia would not be reason enough to disallow a request.
The above guidelines are informational in nature and are not presented nor should be construed as offering legal advice or replacing legal counsel.
© 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 Mr. Douglas Marshall-Steele