Action Alert

(Washington DC, July 12, 2002) Take action now! The Alliance for Marriage, which is a newly formed coalition of religious groups, has launched a campaign to amend the U.S. Constitution. This amendment would define marriage as a union strictly between a man and a woman. This would invalidate all state and local domestic partnership laws and nullify civil rights protections based on marital status.

Representative Ronnie Shows (D-MS) introduced this amendment to the House of Representatives under H.J. Res. 93, titled the “Federal Marriage Amendment.”

*What does this mean?
In many states, unmarried persons (unmarried relatives, heterosexual couples, gay and lesbian couples and even unrelated clergy members) have some of the same rights as married persons. However, with this proposed amendment, all such rights will be eliminated and all the domestic partnership laws in eight states and in more than 100 counties, cities, and towns, will be nullified.

If this amendment is successful, all legal protections for unmarried couples (gay or straight) will be destroyed. Such protections include state and local civil rights laws prohibiting discrimination based on “marital status”, state laws protecting unmarried elderly couples who refrain from marrying in order to hold on to their pensions, and more. This amendment would even prohibit state and local governments from making their own decisions on providing benefits to their employees.

*What you can do:
Call or send a letter or email to Judiciary Committee Chairman to:
Mr. F. James Sensenbrenner
2332 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515-4909
Telephone: (202) 225-5101
E-mail: sensen09@mail.house.gov

If your senator is a member of the House Committee on the Judiciary (see list below), ask them to speak personally to the Committee Chairman Mr. F. James Sensenbrenner and show opposition to this amendment.

You can find the contact information for your senator at:
http://www.house.gov/house/MemberWWW.html

Members of the House Committee on the Judiciary:

Mr. Hyde (Illinois)
Mr. Conyers (Michigan)
Mr. Gekas (Pennsylvania)
Mr. Frank (Massachusetts)
Mr. Coble (North Carolina)
Mr. Berman (California)
Mr. Smith (Texas)
Mr. Boucher (Virginia)
Mr. Gallegly (California)
Mr. Nadler (New York)
Mr. Goodlatte (Virginia)
Mr. Scott (Virginia)
Mr. Chabot (Ohio)
Mr. Watt (North Carolina)
Mr. Barr (Georgia)
Ms. Lofgren (California)
Mr. Jenkins (Tennessee)
Ms. Jackson Lee (Texas)
Mr. Cannon (Utah)
Ms. Waters (California)
Mr. Graham (South Carolina)
Mr. Meehan (Massachusetts)
Mr. Bachus (Alabama)
Mr. Delahunt (Massachusetts)
Mr. Hostettler (Indiana)
Mr. Wexler (Florida)
Mr. Green (Wisconsin)
Ms. Baldwin (Wisconsin)
Mr. Keller (Florida)
Mr. Weiner (New York)
Mr. Issa (California)
Mr. Schiff (California)
Ms. Hart (Pennsylvania)
Mr. Flake (Arizona)
Mr. Pence (Indiana)
Mr. Forbes (Virginia)
Mr. Sensenbrenner (Wisconsin), CHAIRMAN

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