Secretary of Health Kathleen Sebelius
on Saturday spoke out against a proposed constitutional amendment
which would ban gay marriage in North Carolina, the Charlotte
Observer reported.
Speaking at the Human Rights Campaign's
(HRC) North Carolina gala held at the Charlotte Convention Center,
Sebelius told 1,400 people that reelecting President Barack Obama was
critical and suggested that defeating the amendment on May 8 would
boost the president's campaign.
“I know there's an important election
in early may in North Carolina,” Sebelius said. “And I think
it's a great template for what needs to be done to organize people
and turn out people for November. North Carolina is hugely important
in this next [presidential] election.”
If approved, the amendment would bar
North Carolina from recognizing the relationships of gay and lesbian
couples with marriage, civil unions and possibly domestic
partnerships.
Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx told the
crowd that “when I go into the ballot box in May … I'm going to
be voting against Amendment 1.”
Openly gay CNN anchor Don Lemon was
honored for living an “open and honest” life with the group's
Visibility Award.