The 50 Spot: Oh, Those Same-Sex Marriage Foes

Welcome back from the Valentine's Day/President's Day weekend! We've got news below from West Virginia, Maine, and Florida in today's 50 spot.

West Virginia: Last month a new Web site launched, wv4marriage.com, to organize anti-LGBT pastors to push West Virginian lawmakers to amend the state's constitution to reflect that marriage is between "one man and one woman." The site, run by a Georgia-based consultancy firm with a stated company mission "focused exclusively on electing Republicans to local office," is being paid for by the West Virginia Family Policy Council, a radical religious organization based in Charleston, WV. The real story here, of course, is that this is another attempt by a radical religious organization to wage cultural warfare, rather than push state lawmakers to focus on issues like putting people back to work, or fixing the state's economy. And that's not just our take on it. Take it from West Virginia House Judiciary Chairwoman Carrie Webster, who told the Times of West Virginia, "We need to keep people working. If we have ended the session on issues like [banning same-sex marriage] ... I think we will have done a disservice to the public." That's a great way of putting it -- proposed bans and campaigns like those being pushed by the West Virginia Family Policy Council are a disservice to the public.

Maine:  Goodness, is there something about the phrase "Family Policy Council" that makes one anti-LGBT?  Example two of the day comes from Maine, where organizers with the Maine Family Policy Council gathered with representatives of Concerned Women of America of Maine, and the Roman Catholic Church to demonstrate against efforts in Maine to recognize marriage equality.  It was the first statewide event organized by proponents of marriage discrimination, and it drew 800 people to the Augusta Civic Center.  Outside the Civic Center, nearly 100 people demonstrated in support of marriage, including several religious leaders.  As one of the pro-marriage demonstrators told the Bangor Daily News, "Marriage is not just about rights and privileges; it’s about love.  Who are we to say that two people of the same sex who love each other can’t be married? Their love doesn’t threaten our marriage. And we’ve been married for 30 years."  Let's hope that's how the majority of legislators in Maine feel, too.

Florida:  Let's get off the topic of people rallying against same-sex marriage, and onto the topic of love-ins.  What's a love-in?  It's what two people in Florida, Nicki Drumb and Rachel Gardiner, organized to promote and celebrate love between same-sex couples and opposite-sex couples over Valentine's Day weekend.  Or, as the Orlando Sentinel put it: "All too often in their fight to secure marriage and adoption rights for gay and lesbian couples, Nicki Drumb and Rachel Gardiner have encountered opposition and hate. So, on Saturday, they decided to spread the love."  The details of the event were simple and (dare we say it) charming.  On 2:14pm on 2/14, folks gathered in a city park to join hands and stand in the shape of a heart.  Is an action like this going to change the trajectory of history?  Probably not.  But is it a simple gesture by community members to show that love is at the core of all relationships, whether they are between two men, two women, or one man and one woman?  Absolutely.