Thursday, March 6, 2008
On February 1, a federal judge silenced Oregon voter's voices on marriage. Yesterday, ADF attorneys filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in an attempt to reclaim the legal right of Oregon citizens to defend marriage in their state.
The court's ruling in February established Oregon's "domestic partnerships" bill as law and prevents Oregon citizens from voting on the bill in November of this year.
This loss comes in the middle of a long battle to protect marriage. On November 2, 2004, 57 percent of Oregon voters voted to pass a constitutional amendment that recognizes marriage as the union of one man and one woman only. Since then, advocates of the homosexual legal agenda have been working around the clock to reverse the expressed will of the people, and last year the Oregon State Legislature enacted the "domestic partnership" bill, a dangerous statute that grants same-sex couples the benefits of marriage under a different name. In response, a referendum was created to provide voters with an opportunity to repeal this unwanted bill, and was submitted to the Oregon Secretary of State on September 26 with signatures exceeding the required number by
more than 6,000. However, state officials claimed it did not receive enough signatures to sustain the referendum. The evaluated "sample" was said to be only
five signatures short. Though a surprising development, a very clear explanation soon became apparent – many of the signatures were wrongfully rejected. ADF filed a lawsuit to ensure that Oregon citizens were given the opportunity to be heard on marriage, but the court's ruling turned a deaf ear to voters.
"In America, every citizen's voice counts. Government bureaucracy cannot be allowed to disenfranchise Oregon voters. One of their most important rights cannot be tossed aside," said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Austin R. Nimocks.
Opponents of marriage are determined to silence the voices of voters, but the battle is far from over. ADF Attorneys will continue the fight to allow the voices of Oregonians to be heard on this very important issue. If we continue to press on, we can – and will – win!
In state after state, when the people have been allowed to vote on marriage, they have
overwhelmingly recognized that it is the union of one man and one woman. In response, advocates of the homosexual legal agenda have sought out officials and courts willing to impose same-sex "marriage" on the people. In spite of the recent ruling, we have won 33 cases on this issue, with only one loss (in Massachusetts). Victory is possible, but we must continue to stand together for marriage.
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