This is personal. Yesterday I learned from OneIowa that the National Organization for Marriage (NOM) has arrived full force in my hometown of Marion, Iowa.
After leaving Iowa in 1981 and finally settling in California in 1994, imagine my surprise on April 3, 2009, when the Iowa Supreme Court unanimously upheld the District Court's ruling holding that there was no important governmental interest in denying citizens marriage licenses based on their sexual orientation. Really? My home state beat California to the punch? I was shocked to say the least.
Fast forward to September 2011 and Swati Dandekar, a Marion Democrat resigned her Iowa Senate seat to take a post on the Iowa Utilities Board. Now there is a special election being held on November 8th which the Democrats must win to maintain their 26-24 majority in the Senate. With a Republican governor and the Iowa House having a 60-40 GOP majority this is a very important race.
According to OneIowa, here is what NOM is up to:
- NOM has publicly endorsed Cindy Golding, the Republican candidate who has stated that she supports a vote on the marriage ban. Running against her is Liz Mathis, a Democrat who has stated that she supports the 2009 unanimous marriage decision, and has expressed her desire to focus on jobs and the economy which are the most pressing issues in her district.
- NOM has also dropped their first flier designed to scare voters and bully them into voting against a candidate who values equality. The mailer states that the “future of marriage” hangs in the balance of the election.
- The anti-equality Concordia Group has spent money on an anti-marriage attack ad that uses the same old tired scare tactics of doom and gloom to support Cindy Golding.
- And finally, the Family Research Council and NOM will be dusting off their so-called “Values Voters Bus” for a national tour and they plan to stop in Cedar Rapids on the Sunday before the election.
Tonight, Democratic candidate, Liz Mathis will debate her Republican opponent, Cindy Golding. The debate will be live streamed on KCRG.com.
Also, here is an interview of Liz from this morning:
UPDATE: If the embedded video doesn't work for you here, you can try viewing on KCRG.com at: Liz Mathis Interview
So, how can you help?
Great question, you can contribute directly to the Liz Mathis for Senate campaign via ActBlue.
Or donate to OneIowa here and help them take the fight directly to NOM.
I hope you will join me in supporting this campaign and help out in any way you can, whether its through a contribution or spreading the word. It will all help.
Thank you!
UPDATE:
I've just learned from Matthew Skuya, Field Director with OneIowa that their final Virtual Phone Bank opportunity is coming up this Sunday through next Thursday. You can schedule call time with Matthew anytime between noon and 8 (central) this Sunday or between 6 and 9 (central) Monday through Thursday.
This is a great way to help out if you are unable to help out via a donation.
He can be reached at (515) 288.4019 ext 203 or email matt@oneiowa.org