What can you do?Fired up about President Bush's endorsement of a proposed constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage Noun 1. same-sex marriage - two people of the same sex who live together as a family; "the legal status of same-sex marriages has been hotly debated" couple, twosome, duet, duo - a pair who associate with one another; "the engaged couple"; "an inseparable ? Want to know how to help stop the president and his far-right cronies? Go ahead and write your congresspeople--but then take it a step further, say two Washington, D.C., activists. "No one put Rosa Parks Noun 1. Rosa Parks - United States civil rights leader who refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man in Montgomery (Alabama) and so triggered the national Civil Rights movement (born in 1913) Parks on the bus," says longtime gay rights activist David Mixner David Mixner (born August 16, 1946) is a civil rights activist and best-selling author. He is best known for his work in anti-war and gay rights advocacy. Childhood David Benjamin Mixner was born on August 16, 1946, near the town of Elmer in southern New Jersey. . "She just refused to get up on her own. We must do the same thing all over the country. To sit quietly while the president presents an amendment that technically is apartheid for gays and lesbians is just no longer an option." Mixner encourages all gay and lesbian people to volunteer their time and give money to gay rights organizations; connect with local activists and start a campaign to pressure lawmakers to vote against the amendment; and don't just vote, get others to the polls. It's even more important, he says, to make the issue personal for everyone you know. Start an e-mail tree that explains how this affects your life and urge your friends and relatives to pass it on to their friends and relatives, "Collect pictures of [same-sex] couples who have families in your communities and create community bulletin boards with a wall of photos," Mixner says. Matt Foreman Matt Foreman may be:
Before you get into discussions with family, friends, and others, however, know the issues. When someone brings up polygamy polygamy: see marriage. polygamy Marriage to more than one spouse at a time. Although the term may also refer to polyandry (marriage to more than one man), it is often used as a synonym for polygyny (marriage to more than one woman), which appears , what do you say? If someone asks you what rights you can't get with civil unions, will you be able to tell them? Go to www.advocate.com or to the Web sites of the leading activist groups and get your talking points.--John Caldwell Quittner has written for Business Week and the New York Post The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and the oldest to have been published continually as a daily.[3] Since 1976, it has been owned by Australian-born billionaire Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation and is one of the 10 . |
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