Pressuring Rhode Island Attorney General Candidates on Marriage Equality

by Michael Jones · 2010-03-24 12:29:00 UTC
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Last year, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley made history by becoming the first attorney general in the country to sue the federal government over the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). In spelling out the reasons behind the lawsuit, Coakley summed it up pretty quickly and concisely: "It is unconstitutional for the federal government to discriminate, as it does because of DOMA’s restrictive definition of marriage."

Yes, Coakley may not have been destined to become a U.S. Senator, but she's emerged as an important voice in the world of state attorneys general. Call it paving the way for equal rights, or just call it the right thing to do, either way Coakley's lawsuit is historic. And now, grassroots activists are hoping to urge other attorneys general around the country to get on board.

It's the folks behind Defend the Law to be specific, and they're already blazing a trail of success.  After a steady campaign hitting candidates running for attorney general in Connecticut, Defend the Law was able to secure commitments from all candidates to support Coakley's DOMA lawsuit. One state down ... and next up?

Rhode Island. Folks at Defend the Law are calling for all candidates running for Rhode Island Attorney General to pledge to support or join the Coakley DOMA lawsuit. They've already had success in getting one attorney general candidate -- Steve Archambault -- to say that if he were attorney general, he'd support Coakley's lawsuit.

"If elected Attorney General, Steve Archambault will support Martha Coakley’s efforts through either joining the lawsuit, submitting an amicus brief or providing some other appropriate assistance," his office said.

That's fantastic news. But there are still five candidates running for attorney general in Rhode Island who haven't lent their voice to the DOMA lawsuit. It's time to encourage these five folks to get with the program, and support taking a bold legal step to eliminate DOMA once and for all.

The five other candidates running for attorney general in Rhode Island are Joe Fernandez (D), Peter Kilmartin (D), Robert Rainville (D), Chris Little (Moderate Party), and Erik Wallin (R). Three Dems, one independent, and one Republican, all of whom should lend their support to legal action intended to challenge the constitutionality of DOMA.

Rhode Island is heading in the right direction toward marriage equality. In 2004, current Attorney General Patrick Lynch issued an advisory opinion saying that the state should recognize same-sex marriages committed in states where gay marriage is legal. And though their current Governor, Don Carcieri, is so homophobic that he vetoed a bill that would have allowed gay folks to plan the funerals of their deceased partners, all major candidates for governor in 2010 support marriage equality.

Having these attorney general candidates add their voice to this trajectory would be another shot of momentum toward equal rights. And that's what Defend the Law argues.

The group's founder, Paul Sousa, told AKA William that "“We are simply asking these ... candidates for attorney general whether they would defend state law — marriage equality — and legally support the lawsuit against the federal Defense of Marriage Act, which denies married same-sex couples of their state all 1,138 federal marriage benefits."

And that's the point of this all -- getting these candidates behind the movement to stop robbing married gay and lesbian couples of more than 1,100 federal benefits.

Urge these candidates to get behind Martha Coakley's DOMA lawsuit today. If Massachusetts and Connecticut can get behind this federal court challenge to DOMA, so too can Rhode Island. All it takes is for equal rights activists to put a little pressure on these candidates for attorney general, and for these candidates to do what is right. And that's recognize that when a law discriminates against thousands of people, that law must be legally overturned as soon as possible.

Photo credit: alex-s

Michael Jones is a Change.org Editor. He has worked in the field of human rights communications for a decade, most recently for Harvard Law School.
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