Wednesday, December 07, 2005

Hey, legislature, leave that Constitution alone!

Looking to take a break from calling Specter and Santorum about the Patriot Act? How about calling your state representatives about the latest attack on equality for gay and lesbian families!

Urgent - Ask Your Legislator NOT to Sponsor the Marriage Amendment

We need your help to stop anti-LGBT activists from writing discrimination into the Pennsylvania Constitution. Representative Scott Boyd (R - Lancaster) is drafting an amendment to our state constitution that would deny gay and lesbian families legal recognition. Four other representatives have already signed on to this discriminatory proposal called the Pennsylvania Marriage Protection Amendment.

Yesterday evening, December 6, the Pennsylvania Family Institute sent an email urging their members to contact state legislators to support this amendment.

We need you to contact your state representatives and ask them NOT to co-sponsor or support the Marriage Protection Amendment. Ask them to protect all Pennsylvania families and not harm some by writing discrimination into Pennsylvania's constitution. Pennsylvania law already prevents gay and lesbian couples from marrying, and this amendment is not necessary.

So-called Marriage Protection Amendments affect all families--not just same-sex families. While supporters in other states have said these amendments are only about gay marriage, this is not true. In Ohio, courts have ruled that unmarried people, including unmarried heterosexual couples, may not seek protection from abuse orders. In Michigan, groups are challenging domestic partner benefits for employees. Virginia's recently enacted amendment is so broad that it may interfere with the rights of all Virginians to create wills, medical directives, powers of attorney, child custody and property arrangements, and even joint bank accounts.

You can find your state legislators on the web at http://www.legis.state.pa.us/index.cfm. Please call them today!

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