The Phoenix Network:
 
 
About  |  Advertise
Adult  |  Moonsigns  |  Band Guide  |  Blogs  |  In Pictures
 
Media -- Dont Quote Me  |  News Features  |  Talking Politics  |  This Just In
Nominate-best-2010

Same-sex marriage

Fighting for a basic civil right without repeating other states' mistakes
By DEIRDRE FULTON  |  March 25, 2009

090327_Damon_m
ACCEPTING ACCOLADES Same-sex marriage advocates applaud State Senator Dennis Damon, right, D-Hancock County, for taking the lead on introducing a marriage bill in the Maine Legislature. CREDIT RISE PHOTOGRAPHY 

From the podium at EqualityMaine's 25th anniversary dinner last Saturday night, former state senator Ethan Strimling posed a question to the 630 people in attendance: If gay marriage were allowed in Maine, how many of you would tie the knot? Almost half the room stood up. Couples hugged and kissed and cheered. They are on the brink of achieving a victory many of them only imagined. They are aware that their moment to seize is now.

"Separate is not equal | Many state benefits, and federal ones, too, are tied specifically to 'marriage'"by Deidre Fulton.

"The text of the bill | Key sections from 'An Act To End Discrimination in Civil Marriage and Affirm Religious Freedom'"by Jeff Inglis.

Supporters and opponents of same-sex marriage in Maine have just under a month to make serious headway convincing both the public and the Legislature that their position on bringing civil marriage to the Pine Tree State is the correct one. On April 24, the state's Joint Standing Committee on the Judiciary will convene a public hearing to hear arguments for and against a bill, proposed early this year, that would lift the state's prohibition on gay marriage (learn more about the bill's particulars in the sidebar, "The Text of the Bill"). Both sides hope to have at least 1000 advocates in attendance. (This goal is well within reach; 2005 hearings related to the Maine Won't Discriminate ballot initiative drew similar numbers.)

"The hearing is going to play an important role in the outcome of this," says Shenna Bellows, executive director of the Maine Civil Liberties Union. And it's not just the legislators whom organizers hope to influence at the hearing — it's regular Maine citizens, too. At the EqualityMaine event on Saturday, that organization's executive director, Betsy Smith, implored the crowd to be there on April 24, warning them: "If the opposition outnumbers us ... that's the image that will stay with Maine voters for the rest of the campaign."

The short-term goal is to convince a majority of the judiciary committee's 14 members to pass the bill on to the full state Senate — where LD 1020 needs 18 votes to pass, and will require the support of several GOP senators. It's generally assumed that proponents will have no trouble garnering the 76 votes they need in the state House. Farther down the line, there's a good chance that the question will be put before Maine citizens — the same voters who defeated an anti-gay ballot question in 2005; the same pool from which EqualityMaine has already identified 45,000 pro-marriage voters. But for now, this campaign is primarily a legislative one.

1  |  2  |  3  |  4  |  5  |  6  |   next >
Related: Queer eye for the Hawkeyes, Equal rites?, 31. Ron Prentice, More more >
  Topics: News Features , U.S. Government, U.S. State Government, Ethan Strimling,  More more >
  • Share:
  • Share this entry with Facebook
  • Share this entry with Digg
  • Share this entry with Delicious
  • RSS feed
  • Email this article to a friend
  • Print this article
HTML Prohibited
Add Comment

Today's Event Picks
ARTICLES BY DEIRDRE FULTON
Share this entry with Delicious
  •   POWER OF PLACE  |  January 29, 2010
    I'd arranged the trip (Dogtown is about an hour and a half south of Portland) because I was planning to write about Elyssa East's new book, Dogtown: Death and Enchantment in a New England Ghost Town.
  •   BUS FARES SET TO CLIMB  |  January 27, 2010
    A quick primer on local bus fares and ridership, and whether (and how) to raise those numbers.
  •   BACK TO SCHOOL  |  January 20, 2010
    Some of us know (or think we know) our paths from a young age. We follow those trails through 12 years of school, and then four (plus) more. Some of us don't. We flounder, we search, we know what we want but we don't know how to achieve it. The crucial component in all these scenarios? Education.
  •   GETTING THE GREEN LIGHT ON TRANSPORT  |  January 26, 2010
    Exciting — if daunting — developments are on the transportation horizon in the greater Portland area.
  •   SEARCHING FOR STEPHEN KING  |  January 13, 2010
    In 1983, Doubleday published yet another book from the increasingly renowned Stephen King, whose Carrie and The Shining (to name just two) were already popular books and movies.

 See all articles by: DEIRDRE FULTON

MOST POPULAR
RSS Feed of for the most popular articles
 Most Viewed   Most Emailed 



  |  Sign In  |  Register
 
thePhoenix.com:
Phoenix Media/Communications Group:
TODAY'S FEATURED ADVERTISERS
Copyright © 2010 The Phoenix Media/Communications Group