As the Senate prepares to vote on the
federal marriage amendment early next week, many dems seem to be debating the viability of the "gay marriage" question. Is it simply a losing issue for dems across the country? From the looks of 11 state amendments passed in the last election, it seems hard not to think so.
So should we cut our losses, push the issue to the back burner and hope it doesn't get too much traction with the GOP base in '06 elections? Or is there a way to turn it around, and possibly bring some more fair-minded logic to the debate?
In at least one state, just that is happening.
Fair Wisconsin is the campaign working to defeat the state's proposed ban in November. Wisconsin faces a two sentence amendment that would permanently ban marriage for gay and lesbian couples in the state, as well as prohibit any status that is "substantially similar." This would foreclose the possibility of civil unions and seriously jeopardize other legal protections, including domestic partner benefits.
So why am I confident that the proposed amendment will not be a guaranteed strike to Democratic performance in the '06 cycle? Because Wisconsin has advantages that no other state has had.
First and foremost, Fair Wisconsin has time. Other states have had only a matter of months to educate and mobilize tens of thousands of voters, but Wisconsin's efforts to vote down the ban this November started back in January of 2004. And since then, Fair Wisconsin added staff, amassed nearly 7, 000 volunteers, recruited coordinators in every county of the state, organized Action Networks in 26 communities, trained over 1600 speakers, and cultivated a broad base of support from communities of faith, labor organizations, and many more organizations across the state.
And these efforts only continue to grow.
Stay tuned...Wisconsin's amendment fight is headed in the right direction and could even become a national turning point.