What do our Democratic Governor, Tea Party Congresswoman, and NAACP President Have in Common?
Answer: All three oppose N.C.'s anti-LGBT amendment.
It would take a lot to have our state NAACP President, Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, Republican U.S. Rep. Renee Ellmers and Democratic Governor Bev Perdue see eye-to-eye.
But all politics aside, they've joined countless fair-minded North Carolinians who have all agreed to vote against legislation that would ban same-sex marriage, as state statute already does, but also prohibit civil unions and strip domestic partner benefits.
They did so as soon as they were informed of the facts: that this amendment is tremendously far-reaching, irresponsible and devastatingly harmful for our state and it's citizens; that it eliminates legal recognitions and protections for all unmarried couples, regardless of their sexual orientation; that it represents an especially insidious message to LGBT North Carolinians, which is that amendment sponsors want to permanently enshrine in our state's founding document the idea that a minority of our citizens do not deserve equal rights, treatment or protection; that this amendment does not stop at banning same-sex marriage, civil unions and domestic partnerships, but could also strip from all unmarried couples the few legal rights and protections they currently have under our laws, including hospital visitation, end-of-life directives, custody arrangements, health and life insurance policies and domestic violence protections; and that this amendment sends a strong message to everyone from diverse business interests to impressionable LGBT youth, that North Carolina 'doesn't want you here.'
That's the power of a little education. And so Equality NC will be bringing "the education" to you in three new ways:
(1) Amendment "Truth Tuesdays"
Whether it's the media calling this a "marriage amendment" (which it is not), or an amendment sponsor claiming this type of discriminatory legislation helps anyone (which it does not), we'll be on Facebook andTwitter (#truthtuesday), where you already are, providing the facts behind the fallacies each week...so that, most importantly, you can share them with all of our potential supporters (i.e. probable voters.)
(2) Election Education
Did you know that the referendum will not be numbered? That you'll be asked to vote "for" or "against," rather than "yes" or "no?" That there will be two ballots that will need to be printed (at double the cost to taxpayers), to accommodate this hateful legislation? We'll be working tirelessly to share what we know about this referendum--with new information coming in from day-to-day--about the ins and outs of the amendment and the election day landscape.
(3) 2011 ENC Conference & Gala
Want to learn how to fight this amendment first-hand? Want to gain grassroots organizing skills to join the campaign to oppose LGBT inequality in N.C.? Join us November 12, at the 2011 Equality NC Foundation Conference and Gala, where we'll officially launch our coalition campaign to protect our state's youth, businesses, and families from this divisive legislation!
REGISTER TODAY. http://equalitync.org/conference
Because common ground was never so easy to find.
For Equality,
Jen Jones
Your Communications Director
0 comments:
Post a Comment