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Summarized by Kent Larsen
LDS Church Active in Two Anti-Gay-Marriage Efforts, Oregon Anti-Gay Ed Measure Ignored
NEW YORK, NEW YORK -- After more than 30 US states have passed measures
designed to keep homosexuals from getting the right to marry, the LDS Church
is actively working in two states, Nevada and Nebraska, to pass two
additional measures on the November ballot. But a measure on Oregon's ballot
that would control what is taught about homosexuality in publis schools
hasn't attracted Church efforts.
In Nevada, the Church is supporting a ban on same-sex marriages in the
state, in what may be one of the more important states for this effort, due
to its reputation for quick divorces and marriages. According to the Los
Angeles Times, the effort has attracted support mainly from Nevada's
"old-timers" those who have stayed more than a few years in what is surely
one of the most transient states in the US. The Nevada measure is an
amendment to the state's constitution, which, under Nevada's constitution,
must be approved again in 2002 in order to pass. The measure is expected to
be approved the first time in November.
Nebraska's measure is also an amendment to the state constitution, and like
Nevada, it is expected to pass, doubling the number of state constitutional
amendments on homosexual marriage from two to four. The other states have
all passed laws instead of the more permanent amendments to their state
constitutions. In Nevada the Church originally participated as part of the
DOMA Committee, which gathered the signatures necessary to get the measure
on the ballot. Now, however, the Church is participating in the Coalition
for the Protection of Marriage, a new group that accepts donations from
outside of Nebraska, unlike the DOMA Committee.
Interestingly, the LDS Church is not participating in Oregon's Measure 9, a
ballot referendum that seeks to bar schools from sanctioning or promoting
homosexuality. That measure has not attracted support from the Catholic
Church in Oregon either, in spite of its activity in support of DOMA
initiatives elsewhere. The LDS Church and the Catholic Church are the two
largest denominations in Oregon.
See also:
On Hot-Button Political Issues, Nevada Is a Johnny-Come-Lately
Los Angeles Times 6Oct00 T1
By Tom Gorman: Times Staff Writer
Purely anti-gay law, two partners say
Lincoln NE Journal Star 8Oct00 T1
By Nancy Hicks: Lincoln Journal Star
The 416 Debate
Lincoln NE Journal Star 8Oct00 T1
Measure 9 is galvanizing Christian supporters, foes
Portland OR Oregonian 6Oct00 T1
By Bill Graves and Tomoko Hosaka: Oregonian Staff
Churches differ on the initiative that would bar promoting or sanctioning homosexuality in schools
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