from www.noon36.com

Only 24 days left until the election!


Q: What is Constitutional Amendment 36 and what would it do?
A: Constitutional Amendment 36 would change our state Constitution to treat gays and lesbians unequally by banning gay marriage.

Q: Why should Oregon voters vote No on Constitutional Amendment 36?
A: Constitutional Amendment 36 might seem simple but it goes beyond banning gay marriage. It hurts real people by putting unequal treatment for gays and lesbians into our Constitution. Do we really want to deny thousands of Oregon children and families health insurance, fair inheritance and the ability to make life-saving medical decisions? We may disagree about social issues such as marriage but those disagreements do not belong in our Constitution. Vote NO on Constitutional Amendment 36.

Q: What makes you think that this campaign is winnable? No other state has been able to stop this.

A: Our polling shows this race is a statistical dead-heat with neither side over 50%. While other states have passed similar amendments, we all know Oregon is different. We have successfully defeated three anti-gay ballot measures in the past 12 years. We also know the more we talk to voters about the real harms of Constitutional Amendment 36, the more they reject it.



Q: What would this Constitutional Amendment do to the same-sex couples already married in Oregon?

A: We don’t know for sure; the marriages could be invalidated. We do know that if Constitutional Amendment 36 passes, gay and lesbian couples will be locked out of critical protections like health care coverage (or access), pension and property rights and the ability to make lifesaving medical decisions for a loved one.



Q. I think we should leave marriage alone and just push for civil unions.

A. Civil unions, even at their best, do not provide the same broad recognition in law as marriage. We should continue a conversation in Oregon about civil unions and marriage, but we can’t assume the Legislature will ever pass civil unions. So we shouldn’t put unequal treatment of gays and lesbians into our Constitution, especially without any assurance that their rights will be protected by future legislation.



Q. I think marriage is between a man and a woman. Voting Yes is the only way I can support that.

A. Oregonians may disagree about social issues such as marriage. But, social disagreements don’t belong in our Constitution. You do not have to approve of gay marriage to vote no.



Q: Gay people can’t marry in Oregon now, so if this passes it doesn’t really change anything right?

A: Constitutional Amendment 36 does change the Oregon Constitution to say that it is OK to treat gay and lesbian Oregonians unequally. This amendment will harm real Oregonians by denying many families access to health care, inheritance rights and the ability to make lifesaving medical decisions.



Q. Will my church have to perform gay weddings if Constitutional Amendment 36 is defeated?

A. No church has ever been required to perform any ceremony outside its tradition. This will not change, regardless of whether Measure 36 is defeated.



Q. This isn’t really discrimination because you can get everything you need from legal contracts, right?

A. There are times when legal contracts can protect families in times of crisis, but even the most ironclad documents don’t work in every case. Gay and lesbian Oregonians should not be treated unequally by having to seek out costly and complicated legal protections for their families.



Q. If we don’t draw the line now, where and when will we draw it? What will we allow next?

A. Voting No on Constitutional Amendment 36 does not change marriage in Oregon. Marriage will always remain a personal commitment between two otherwise unmarried adults, who agree to share love, commitment and responsibility.