Opponents of a proposed North Carolina
constitutional amendment that would ban gay marriage launched on
Wednesday their campaign to defeat the measure at the ballot box in
May.
The measure, if approved by voters,
would bar the state from recognizing the unions of gay and lesbian
couples with marriage, civil unions and possibly domestic
partnerships.
At a morning press conference in
downtown Raleigh, the Coalition to Protect All North Carolina
Families warned that the amendment could have far reaching
implications beyond merely banning marriage.
The group launched the campaign with a
pair of videos.
In one, everyday people discuss their
reasons for opposing the measure.
“The amendment coming up on May
eighth,” a man says. “The reputation of North Carolina is on the
line again. And it's a question of what kind of state we are and who
we're going to be.”
“It would mean that for my work I'm
not getting the same benefits and that I can't provide for the people
I love,” a woman dressed in purple says. (The video is embedded in
the right panel of this page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)
Organizers said they wanted to have 1
million conversions with people before the vote.
(Related: Support
for North Carolina gay marriage ban drops 3 months in a row.)