Wednesday, April 27, 2005

Write against the proposed constitutional amendment against GLBT

ample letter to Sen. Wentworth to protes HJR 6, the proposed constitutional amendment stripping gay and lesbian Texans of their rights. Please consider emailing your senator against this bill.

Email Sen. Wentworth
If you don't know who to write, go here: who is my senator

The LETTER:
"The Honorable Jeff Wentworth
State Senator
Texas Senate

Dear Senator Wentworth:

I am writing to urge you to oppose HJR 6, the proposed constitutional
amendment which would write unequal treatment for gay and lesbian Texans
into our Constitution by banning marriage for gay and lesbian couples. It
would also bar civil unions for same-sex and opposite-sex couples.

The Texas Constitution was first adopted in 1876, and its Bill of Rights
echoes key freedoms of the U.S. Constitution designed to protect all
citizens of the Lone Star State. Our Constitution was not designed to revoke
or restrict these liberties.

If this amendment passes both houses of the legislature and is approved by
voters, thousands of committed same-sex couples will be written out of the
Constitution meant to safeguard them and their families.

Marriage, other forms of relationship recognition and basic civil rights
protections are essential components that make all families, including
families headed by same-sex couples, safer and more secure.

Changing the Constitution is never simple. There are over 1000 protections,
rights and responsibilities that go along with civil marriage. Many, like
immigration rights and veterans death benefits, cannot be covered by
contracts or legal planning. The Anti-Gay Texas Marriage Amendment would
permanently deny access to each of these family protections to gay and
lesbian couples and their families.

Our Constitution is for protecting our most basic and important rights. It
should never be used to settle partisan, religious or ideological disputes.
There is no question that many Texans disagree about marriage for gay and
lesbian couples, but those disagreements do not belong in our Constitution.

Please oppose these amendments to the Texas Constitution and any attempt to
build discrimination into our great state's chief document. I look forward
to hearing from you on this extremely important issue."
______________________________________________________________
My personal addition to this letter:

I for one, can't understand why a gay civil union or marriage will threaten my own marriage. It's ridiculous. In addition, as a nurse I have taken care of many gay patients, whose partners are extremely devoted to them, and actually spend more time with their partners than straight people do. They love as deeply as we do, and there is nothing wrong with that. My Uncle is gay, and he and his partner have raised 2 children who graduated from Ivy League schools, something I cannot say I have done with my own children.
Gay people do not deserve to have their rights as citizens of this country stripped from them. That is unconstitutional in my humble opinion.
But then I guess that in every generation we have to find a scape goat and this time it is gay people.
Meet some, they are not scary people. They love, laugh and enjoy life just like the rest of us.

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