Thomas Messner at Heritage's Foundry blog on North Carolina deciding marriage:
According to the Alliance Defense Fund, “Sixty-three million Americans have voted on marriage, and in 31 out of 31 states they have protected marriage as the union between one man and one woman.”
On May 8, North Carolinians will have the same opportunity when they vote on a ballot measure that would amend the North Carolina constitution to protect marriage as one man and one woman.
[Today] the debate about marriage includes not only whether and how to strengthen marriage but also, more fundamentally, what marriage is. That is the question North Carolina voters will decide on May 8.
...State constitutional amendments play an important part in helping to strengthen marriage by:
- Protecting marriage from judicial activism in state courts,
- Settling the marriage question for state lawmakers,
- Reinforcing the understanding that marriage as one man and one woman is deeply rooted in American values, history, and traditions, and
- Demonstrating a strong public awareness that marriage as one man and one woman should be affirmatively protected in law.
In addition, efforts to defend the core meaning of marriage as having something to do with mothers, fathers, and children should be coupled with efforts to strengthen marriage in general.
