ACLU launches national marriage campaign (16054)

The American Civil Liberties Union on Monday announced plans to launch a national "marriage campaign" to persuade Americans that it is unfair to deny legal protections to the families of same-sex couples.

"Our Constitution guarantees basic fairness to all people, yet lesbian and gay couples who make lasting commitments to each other just like married couples are denied protections for their families," said Anthony D. Romero, executive director of the ACLU. "With states racing to enact amendments that will forever bar same-sex couples from getting legal protections, it is critical to show why it's wrong to keep people from visiting their partners in the hospital or from making emergency medical decisions, and how it hurts children to be legal strangers to their parents."

Among other public education efforts, the campaign will offer assistance to local campaigns fighting constitutional amendments that seek to bar gay people from marriage and other family protections.

"One thing I learned during Utah's recent constitutional amendment challenge is that most people don't realize the toll these measures take on very real Americans with very real families," said Michael Mitchell, the new director of the ACLU's Marriage Campaign. "When people are given the opportunity to see the chaos caused by our government's treatment of gay families, their attitudes change."

To learn more about the ACLU's efforts toward greater fairness in marriage, visit www.aclu.org/getequal/ffm/index.html.