The campaign to approve a
constitutional amendment limiting marriage to heterosexual couples
claims such bans don't injure gay and lesbian couples.
Minnesota for Marriage made the claim
in a 2-minute video released on Thursday.
“The marriage amendment has no impact
on rights and benefits for gay couples,” Kalley Yanta says in the
46th episode of the series Minnesota Marriage Minute.
“All the amendment would do is put our definition of marriage as
the union of one man and one woman, which has always existed in
Minnesota, into our state constitution so that it is protected from
being redefined by activist judges or politicians.”
Yanta goes on to say that gay couples
already enjoy similar rights. This is evidenced by the increasing
number of gay couples living in Minnesota, Yanta says.
“Our current law does not hinder
their opportunities and participation in society. Nothing in the
amendment would change that.”
“Voters in other states have enacted
state constitutional amendments defining marriage as the union of one
man and one woman and there have been no hardships for same-sex
couples in those states,” Yanta adds. (The video is embedded on
this page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)
However, California's 2008
voter-approved amendment put an end to the weddings of gay couples
taking place in the state. And broader bans in other states have
been used to deny recognition of gay couples with other unions such
as domestic partnerships or civil unions.