Gay activists and
their allies in Wisconsin are canvassing the state on
Saturday, going door-to-door to ask voters to oppose a
November ballot initiative to amend the state's
constitution to ban same-sex marriage. Over 500
volunteers with the group Fair Wisconsin will cover each of
Wisconsin's 72 counties.
"We have
174 days left until voters weigh in on the ban, and we have
the massive grassroots operation that it will take to
defeat it," said Fair Wisconsin campaign
manager Mike Tate.
Madonna Bowman,
the Fond du Lac County coordinator, met with 22 other
volunteers on Monday to plan their Saturday canvass. Bowman
got involved because she has a lesbian daughter.
"This issue directly impacts our family," she
said, "and I think that as people in Fond du Lac
understand the broad implications of the ban they will vote
no."
St. Croix County
coordinator Mike Day and other volunteers will talk to
voters in Hudson. Day is a fourth-generation Wisconsinite
who works across the state line as the senior
vice president of the Science Museum of Minnesota.
"St. Croix is one of the fastest-growing and most
economically vibrant counties in Wisconsin because of its
close proximity to the Twin Cities," he said. "The ban
puts that vitality at risk. For example, it would
jeopardize domestic-partner health benefits. If the
ban passes, it would make it difficult for us to recruit and
retain the best employees."
Ashland County
coordinator Carl Sack is leading a group of Ashland
residents across his county. "We need to inform the
people of Ashland what's at stake with the
ban," he said. "That's what we'll be
doing on Saturday and in the months to come." (The
Advocate)
