Prompted by SneakySnu's diary, On the day of the NC Amendment One vote, we don't need this crap, I went to the Greensboro News and Observer editorial page to see what they were doing and found dueling op-ed pages by a supporter and two opponents of the Amendment. So I decided to do a little digging. It seems that when we get past the four major dailies, some papers (in Asheville and Burlington, for instance) just don't endorse ballot measures. But the six newspapers I looked at were, with the exception of Greensboro, all opposed to Amendment One:
The best editorial page entry, from the Charlotte Observer:
From the Greensboro News-Record:
In one corner, Amendment One YES: Voters, not judges. The majority leader of the North Carolina House discusses the "absurd claims" made by the opponents of the amendment.
In the other corner, Amendment One NO: Citizens’ rights in peril.A past president of the N.C. Bar Association and a former chief justice of the N.C. Supreme Court explain how North Carolina is better than this.
From the Charlotte Observer:
AMENDMENT ONE (the N.C. constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage): Vote AGAINST
North Carolina already bans same-sex marriage by state law so this constitutional change is unnecessary. It is also a flawed and discriminatory amendment that goes further than state law by banning civil unions, potentially endangering health insurance benefits and other benefits for straight and gay couples.
From the Winston-Salem Journal:
On the "marriage amendment" that would define legal marriage as between a man and a woman: Against.
City Council votes to oppose constitutional amendment banning same-sex legal unions
From the Raleigh News and Observer:
Just say no:
Amendment One meets none of the criteria by which a constitution can properly be modified. It is motivated by politics, driven in some cases by a vindictive attitude toward groups of people not approved of by those who believe themselves to be in the “mainstream.”
Marriage is far too strong an institution to have phony “protections” like this one. And the final and sad irony is that this amendment is being pushed by the very people who fancy themselves enemies of what they call “big government,” yet in this case, they’re fine with government intruding in people’s personal lives.
From the
Jacksonville Daily News:
Marriage has survived for centuries without this
What is clear is that the institution of marriage has survived for centuries without this amendment. People should be able to make up their own minds about marriage; no constitutional amendment should be necessary – one way or the other.
From the
Wilmington Star-News:
Editorial - State constitution should not be used to promote discrimination
But one excellent reason to oppose this amendment is the unfavorable attention it has drawn to North Carolina, which has spent decades building a reputation as a progressive Southern state.
Now, I suppose we wait to see if anyone pays attention to their local newspapers.
If you live in North Carolina and you haven't voted, go vote NO on Amendment One.