The turnout of
thousands of gays and lesbians for public celebrations in
Indianapolis this weekend underscored how much their
community is moving toward the mainstream despite two
recent major political defeats. An annual gay pride
celebration, IN Pride, drew thousands of Indiana gays
and lesbians before ending Sunday.
It provided a sense of pride despite the Indiana
general assembly's passage of a constitutional
amendment that would ban same-sex marriage. In a
second setback, the city-county council in Indianapolis
rejected amending the city's human rights ordinance to
include civil rights protection for gays and lesbians.
"I do feel we're under attack," said Jeff Newman, 44,
who works in a family-owned construction equipment
business in Greenwood and volunteers for a gay rights
organization. "And the community is not going to take
it lying down."
Others, however, say they feel accepted. Rob
MacPherson and his partner, Steven Stolen, are the
parents of a 7-year-old adopted daughter. "We attract
attention more than we would in Chicago and definitely more
than in San Francisco," MacPherson said. "Two men and
a daughter [is] still pretty novel. [But] people have
applauded us and come up and talked to us about her."
An Indianapolis Star/WTHR survey
published in April found that 56% of Indiana residents
polled supported a constitutional ban on same-sex
marriage. The earliest the proposed amendment could go
before voters for approval is 2008.
Based on 2000 U.S. census figures, Indiana had
10,219 same-sex couples who were living together, up
from 1,935 in the 1990 census, as reported by the
Human Rights Campaign, a national gay rights advocacy group.
Overall, 0.74% of all households in the state were same-sex
couples in the last census, lower than the U.S. average.
Gov. Mitch Daniels was asked about the IN Pride
events during a previously scheduled press conference
on Friday. "I believe ours is a state welcoming to
all, and this event reflects, I believe, [that]
citizens of all kinds and immigrants in our state will feel
welcome," Daniels told The Indianapolis Star.
However, executive director Micah Clark of the
Christian conservative American Family Association,
said gays and lesbians should be less militant.
"Everywhere we look there's something about gay rights. I'm
not saying they can't do what they want to in their bedroom;
I just don't want to know about it," Clark said.
Andrew Collins, author of Fodor's Gay Guide
to the USA, said central Indiana is relatively
gay-friendly. "In Indianapolis or Bloomington, albeit
with some discretion, a same-sex couple can basically
walk around most areas and feel safe, or at least as
safe as any other couple might," Collins said in response to
an e-mail question from the Star. Some of
Indiana's leading companies have been applauded for offering
health care benefits to domestic partners of
employees. They include Eli Lilly and Co. and
Columbus-based Cummins Inc. (AP)