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Washington Marriage Equality Opponent Dies

Washington Marriage Equality Opponent Dies

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Pro footballer turned minister Ken Hutcherson was one of Washington State's most fervent campaigners against marriage equality.

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Ken Hutcherson, a pro football player turned minister who was one of the leading opponents of marriage equality in Washington State, died Wednesday at age 61.

Hutcherson had suffered from prostate cancer for more than a decade, The Seattle Times reports.

He played for the Dallas Cowboys, San Diego Chargers, and Seattle Seahawks in the 1970s, and he retired in 1977 due to a knee injury. He cofounded Antioch Bible Church in Kirkland, Wash., in 1984 and became its senior pastor the following year, according to the church's website.

Hutcherson championed racial equality as leader of an ethnically diverse congregation, but he was adamantly opposed to marriage equality and LGBT rights in general. He circulated petitions to repeal LGBT-inclusive antidiscrimination laws, and in 2004 and 2005 he organized "Mayday for Marriage" rallies in Seattle, the state capital of Olympia, and Washington, D.C., to encourage resistance to marriage rights for same-sex couples.

Marriage equality won the day in Washington State, however. The legislature passed a bill approving equal marriage rights in 2012, and it was upheld by voters in that year's election. The state had offered domestic partnerships to same-sex couples since 2007.

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Trudy Ring

Trudy Ring is The Advocate’s senior politics editor and copy chief. She has been a reporter and editor for daily newspapers and LGBTQ+ weeklies/monthlies, trade magazines, and reference books. She is a political junkie who thinks even the wonkiest details are fascinating, and she always loves to see political candidates who are groundbreaking in some way. She enjoys writing about other topics as well, including religion (she’s interested in what people believe and why), literature, theater, and film. Trudy is a proud “old movie weirdo” and loves the Hollywood films of the 1930s and ’40s above all others. Other interests include classic rock music (Bruce Springsteen rules!) and history. Oh, and she was a Jeopardy! contestant back in 1998 and won two games. Not up there with Amy Schneider, but Trudy still takes pride in this achievement.
Trudy Ring is The Advocate’s senior politics editor and copy chief. She has been a reporter and editor for daily newspapers and LGBTQ+ weeklies/monthlies, trade magazines, and reference books. She is a political junkie who thinks even the wonkiest details are fascinating, and she always loves to see political candidates who are groundbreaking in some way. She enjoys writing about other topics as well, including religion (she’s interested in what people believe and why), literature, theater, and film. Trudy is a proud “old movie weirdo” and loves the Hollywood films of the 1930s and ’40s above all others. Other interests include classic rock music (Bruce Springsteen rules!) and history. Oh, and she was a Jeopardy! contestant back in 1998 and won two games. Not up there with Amy Schneider, but Trudy still takes pride in this achievement.