On November 7th, 2006, Amendment 1 will be up for vote in Tennessee. It would amend the state constitution to define marriage as between a man and a woman and ensure that same-sex couples from other states would not be considered legally married in Tennessee.
Some analysis of the amendment and the battle for an open Senate seat after the cut..
Here is the amendment in question:
The historical institution and legal contract solemnizing the relationship of one man and one woman shall be the only legally recognized marital contract in this state. Any policy or law or judicial interpretation, purporting to define marriage as anything other than the historical institution and legal contract between one man and one woman, is contrary to the public policy of this state and shall be void and unenforceable in Tennessee. If another state or foreign jurisdiction issues a license for persons to marry and if such marriage is prohibited in this state by the provisions of this section, then the marriage shall be void and unenforceable in this state.
Marriage, by Tennessee law, is already defined as between one man and one woman. The amendment is almost verbatim to existing 1996 law, which already includes an identical provision denying the recognition of such marriages from other states.
This is not about gay marriage, which is already illegal. It is a 2006 wedge issue. What does this mean for the Senatorial election?
Bill Frist's departure from the Senate leaves an open seat. The most likely Democratic nominee, Harold Ford, Jr., is facing some problems in the polls.
Rasmussen Reports gives the following numbers as of 5/7:
Hilleary (R) 47
Ford (D) 38
Bryant (R) 44
Ford (D) 36
Corker (R) 43
Ford (D) 39
Support for Ford has been weakening as the gap between him and the Republican contestants widens.
This situation is complicated by the fact that Ford is in favor of the state constitutional amendment and voted to pass the national amendment in 2004. From his website:
I will continue to be pro-family, including supporting a constitutional amendment defining marriage as a union between a man and a woman, without taking away the civil rights of gays and lesbians.
The TN constitution has never been amended to restrict the rights of its citizens (although it does contain its share of inequalities from its original version, such as Article IX, Section 2: "No person who denies the being of God, or a future state of rewards and punishments, shall hold any office in the civil department of this state.")
Currently, some Tennessee companies give limited protection to domestic partners, such as access to health insurance for each other and for their children. This applies to unmarried heterosexual couples and same-sex couples. Passage of the amendment would condone curtailing these rights for same-sex couples and, potentially, unmarried men and women living together.
It is difficult to hold the position of being in support of the amendment and also be against "taking away the civil rights of gays and lesbians." Ford voted against a DC ban on same-sex couple adoptions, but there are other risks in Amendment 1.
Ford needs to stand up for the tolerance that he espouses:
I believe that my faith mirrors the principles on which our nation was founded: equality, dignity, tolerance and freedom. These ideas formed the bedrock on which the founding fathers based their claim to independence, and these are the same lessons that Jesus preaches in the Gospel. The separation of church and state is not an order for lawmakers to ignore their faith or to banish their values. Instead, it is a command for tolerance, to recognize that not all of us share the same beliefs or worship the same god and to respect those differences.
Ford, a Memphis congressman, has helped pass and advocated many civil rights measures to ensure equality for African-Americans and other minorities. It is time for him to get rid of this double standard, step up, and take a stand against Amendment 1.
Harold Ford's election website