Home
|
Contact Us
|
NOM BLOG

ADF Offers New Hope for Town Clerks: "Towns Should Have No Reason to Deny Accomodations for Religious Beliefs"

July 19, 2011 at 4:00 pm

ADF, which has offered to defend any town clerk from threats of to their job or criminal prosecution for conscientious objections to same-sex marriage, says town clerks do have legal recourse, because, with little effort, towns or cities can accommodate their religious belief and may be legally obligated to do so:

"Contrary to what some elected officials have indicated, those with sincerely held religious beliefs do not have to leave their faith at government's door," said the Rev. Jason McGuire, executive director of New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms.

McGuire points out that the Alliance Defense Fund, a national group supporting proactive expressions of faith, has issued a memo explaining clerks' rights. Employers must make "reasonable accommodation" for an employee's "sincerely held religious beliefs" under law, it says.

In this instance, the memo says, "because New York law explicitly allows a municipality to delegate a clerk's duties concerning marriage licenses to a deputy clerk or any other municipal employee, a city or town should have no reason to deny a clerk's request for an accommodation." --Albany Times Union

NOM
By NOM Staff | Posted in New York, Religious Liberty, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (37)

Video: Ruth Sheldon, a Conscientious Woman Driven Out of A Job Because Conscience Protections Were Not Provided

July 19, 2011 at 3:30 pm

CNY Central covers Ruth Sheldon's story:

More via the Syracuse Post-Standard:

“If I had to come to work every day with trepidation that somebody might come in asking for that kind of license, it would be very difficult to do my job,” she said. “And if I recommended that they go to another town or city clerk I would be opening myself up to discrimination, and it’s not my desire to discriminate against other people.”

Sheldon, a member of the Fulton Alliance Church, says she didn’t want to comment on whether same-sex marriage is a civil rights issue. “If you ask black people they will tell you that they don’t think it is a civil rights issue,” she said. “I don’t think it’s for me to say. I’m standing on the word of God.”

She said she is giving up a job she loves and a salary and health insurance package of $32,760 a year. She lives with her husband, Robert, a retired dairy farmer, and they will celebrate their 38th wedding anniversary next month. “I know how to live on a little and I know how to live in abundance, and if I have to live on a little then that will be it,” she said.

Granby Town Supervisor Ed Williamson said he respects Sheldon’s stance and accepted her resignation with regret.

NOM
By NOM Staff | Posted in New York, Religious Liberty, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (29)

Christian Innkeepers in Vermont Sued By SS Couple After Refusing to Host Their NY Wedding Reception

July 19, 2011 at 3:00 pm

In the AP:

Two New York women say a Vermont inn refused to host their wedding reception because of the owners' anti-gay bias. The couple is now suing, alleging discrimination under the state's public accommodations law.

Kate Baker and Ming Linsley say they were turned away by the Wildflower Inn, a 24-room inn in Lyndonville, when they told the inn the wedding would have two brides but no groom.

... The American Civil Liberties Union's Vermont chapter filed the lawsuit Tuesday in Caledonia Superior Court. It says the inn violated the state Fair Housing and Public Accommodations Act, which bars public accommodations from denying services to people based on sexual orientation.

NOM
By NOM Staff | Posted in New York, Religious Liberty, Same Sex Marriage, Vermont | Comments (66)

Senator Ruben Diaz: Let the People Vote!

July 19, 2011 at 2:30 pm

LetThePeopleVote.comSen. Diaz rallies the troops:

This Sunday a thousand people will demonstrate in midtown to let Governor Cuomo and Mayor Bloomberg know that even though the same-sex marriage law was approved by the legislature we will not be silenced!

In a city where teachers and public employees are being laid off, and fire houses are being closed for lack of funds, Mayor Michael Bloomberg has decided to spend city funds to have government offices open on a Sunday to perform same-sex weddings.

Having had this bad law passed, we should not retreat in fear the way the Apostles did in the days after the crucifixion and before the resurrected Christ came to reveal himself. Instead, we need to maintain the same drive that the Apostles had after the resurrected Lord filled them with the Spirit.

We have initiated a campaign requesting a referendum so that the 20 million citizens of New York State can vote on and decide whether or not they want same-sex marriage in New York or not.

Let the people vote!

NOM
By NOM Staff | Posted in Let The People Vote, New York, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (5)

Mark Grisanti Will Attend First SS Wedding at Rainbow-Lit Niagara Falls

July 19, 2011 at 2:00 pm

Via the gay news outlet The Advocate:

Buffalo residents Kitty Lambert and Cheryle Rudd plan to marry at midnight this Sunday in a ceremony billed as the first wedding under the new marriage equality law in New York.

Lambert and Rudd will marry at the stroke of midnight on Luna Island at the foot of Niagara Falls, a popular weddings destination which for the first time will be lit in the colors of the rainbow...

Special guests from the national and local scene will include Mark Grisanti, the Buffalo area senator who joined three other Republicans in his chamber to vote for the bill that Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed into law last month.

NOM
By NOM Staff | Posted in New York, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (2)

NY Daily News: NOM Targets "Benedict Arnolds" of the State Senate Who Voted for Gay Marriage

July 19, 2011 at 1:23 pm

The New York Daily News reports on our first salvo:

The National Organization for Marriage launched the first salvo this morning of its previously-promised $2 million campaign to defeat the seven state Senators who switched their votes to back same-sex marriage.

Mailings are being sent to homes in the district of each senator comparing the lawmaker to the legendary Revolutionary War traitor Benedict Arnold. The group claims it will spend $150,000 on the mailings.

“This is the first step in what will be a sustained, determined effort to make sure the constituents of these cowardly Senators know what they have done,” said Brian Brown, NOM’s president.

NOM
By NOM Staff | Posted in New York, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (3)

NOM Launches Mailers Into The Districts of Seven GOP and Democratic Senators Who Betrayed Voters on Marriage; $2 Million Pledge Being Fulfilled

July 19, 2011 at 1:15 pm

This is the first step in what will be a sustained, determined effort to make sure the constituents of these cowardly Senators know what they have done.” --Brian Brown, President of NOM

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – The National Organization for Marriage (NOM) today began making good on its pledge to spend at least $2 million leading to the defeat of the seven state Senators who were responsible for the imposition of same-sex marriage in New York. NOM announced today it was spending $150,000 on issue mailings into the districts of Republican Senators Mark Grisanti, Roy McDonald, James Alesi and Stephen Saland, and Democratic Senators Shirley Huntley, Joseph Addabbo and Carl Kruger.

click for full-size version

“This is the first step in what will be a sustained, determined effort to make sure the constituents of these cowardly Senators know what they have done,” said Brian Brown, NOM’s president. “They decided to ignore principle and their constituents in a calculated political flip-flop only after Governor Cuomo raised $1 million from Wall Street billionaires and hedge fund managers to support the legislation. Now, some of these same Senators are raising tens of thousands of dollars in campaign cash from gay marriage activists all around the country. It’s despicable.”

NOM’s mailers compare the senators to Benedict Arnold, another New Yorker from history who sold his principles for cash. Gen. Benedict Arnold received 6,000 British Pounds Sterling for plotting to surrender Fort West Point to the British.

The mailers also remind voters of key facts about the Senators. For example:

· Senator Mark Grisanti ran for office on a traditional marriage platform, and solicited and accepted a $4,000 campaign contribution from NOM.
· Senator James Alesi has said publicly, “It’s not our job to be moral.”
· Senator Carl Kruger, who is under indictment for allegedly taking $1 million in bribes in exchange for political favors, said of his vote, “What we are about to do is redefine what the American family is.”

“It is shameful that these state Senators flip-flopped on such a critical issue when they saw gay marriage backers raising millions from Wall Street,” Brown said. “It is the people on Main Street who should be able to vote on this issue, not billionaires on Wall Street. We will not rest until the people of New York have the right to vote on marriage just as voters in 31 other states have been able to do.”

NOM previously announced its support for “Let the People Vote,” a multi-denominational effort designed to put the marriage issue before voters in a constitutional amendment. NOM is helping organize four “Let the People Vote” rallies on July 24th, where thousands of traditional marriage supporters are expected to protest the imposition of same-sex marriage without a vote of the people.

NOM
By NOM Staff | Posted in New York, Press Releases, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (9)

New Archbishop of Philadelphia: Marriage is "The Issue Of Our Time"

July 19, 2011 at 12:48 pm

Today Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver was appointed to become the new Archbishop of Philadelphia. In a wide-ranging interview with the journalist John Allen, he is asked about his views on gay marriage:

This is the issue of our time. The church understands marriage as a unique relationship, with a unique definition, which is the faithful love of a man and a woman for each other, permanent, and for the sake of children. As children, if we don't know that our parents love one another, our lives are very unstable. That's why I think every child deserves a family where the father loves the mother, and the mother loves the father. For us to redefine marriage as anything else undermines that notion. I think it's very important that the church keep insisting on this.

It's also important to say that we're not against gay people. What we're doing here is promoting marriage and the meaning of marriage, not condemning others. The church does believe that human sexuality has a meaning in itself, that it's about love and procreation. Any other sexual relationship is contrary to the Gospel, and so a relationship between two people of the same sex is not in line with the teachings of the church and the teachings of the Gospel, and is therefore wrong. That said, we should always respect people who do things contrary to the Gospel. We live in a society where different ways of life are accepted by the general community, and it's important for us to live in a way that's not hostile to people.

We have a duty as Catholics, however, to speak clearly about God's plan for human happiness. Part of that plan is traditional, faithful, Catholic/Christian marriage.

NOM
By NOM Staff | Posted in Catholic Church, Pennsylvania, Religious Liberty, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (8)

Rudy Giuliani to GOP: Accept SSM, Even If It's Wrong!

July 19, 2011 at 12:00 pm

Really, Rudy?

Rudy Giuliani, always a critic of his party’s social agenda, urged Republicans to “move on” from social issues after New York State’s recent approval of gay marriage.

“I think that marriage should be between a man and woman, but I think that the Republican Party would be well advised to get the heck out of people's bedrooms and let these things get decided by states,” said the former New York mayor, who's considering another bid for the Republican presidential nomination, in an interview aired Sunday.

Giuliani said that he thinks the New York vote was “wrong,” but “there are other things that I think are wrong that get decided by democratic vote.” --Politico

NOM
By NOM Staff | Posted in Election Watch 2012, Marriage Election Watch, New York, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (24)

What They Spent to Pass SSM in NY, and Where

July 19, 2011 at 11:30 am

This page represents only the portion that the law requires be dubbed "lobbying" ... and it amounts to $1,816,979.00.

NOM
By NOM Staff | Posted in New York, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (5)

New Attacks on Bachmann in Conservative Media Portray Migraines as Mental Illness

July 19, 2011 at 10:30 am

The attacks on Bachmann keep multiplying. This one --"Stress-related condition ‘incapacitates’ Bachmann"-- is weird. The opening paragraphs suggest the reporter has intelligence that Michele Bachmann has a mental illness and pops mood-altering substances.

Turns out to be she suffers from migraines.

Apparently anti-Bachmann forces have begun to realize that attacking her for being pro-life and pro-marriage is not exactly hurting her in Iowa.

NOM
By NOM Staff | Posted in Election Watch 2012, Iowa, Marriage Election Watch | Comments (2)

Sen Diaz: Threats to Prosecute Town Clerks Who Object to SSM an Outrage

July 19, 2011 at 10:00 am

New York Senator Ruben Diaz comes out swinging:

Since when do district attorneys decide to pick and choose which "official misconduct" should be prosecuted as a criminal offense?

New York State can't even sustain a conviction against former Republican Senator Joseph Bruno for official misconduct when he was charged with taking huge financial favors to shape legislation and other matters for friends! How can district attorneys be allowed to selectively criminally prosecute middle level clerks and staffers for adhering to their core religious principles?

Does anyone actually believe that a clerk's failure to assist in gay marriage should be raised to the level of criminal activity?

If it does, then this new zeal in prosecuting official misconduct by government officials who fail to totally fulfill their governmental duties should amount to an open season for all five New York City District Attorneys to start prosecuting across the board any number of government officials employed under the tenure of Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

... Let's keep our eyes open and see just how this new zeal for justice will be applied. It will either been done equally — or selectively to enforce social engineering."

NOM
By NOM Staff | Posted in New York, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (6)

NOM Optimistic About Winning in Maine if SSM Brought to Popular Vote Again

July 19, 2011 at 9:30 am

NOM Chairman Maggie Gallagher in the Associated Press on the possibility of a 2012 marriage vote in Maine:

The National Organization for Marriage, which opposes gay marriage, isn't saying how much money would be needed to get out its message. But Maggie Gallagher, NOM's chairman and co-founder, said raising money for Maine wouldn't be a problem. The organization plans to raise $20 million this year in U.S.

"We've won 31 out of 31 times when this has been taken to the state. We'd be optimistic about winning again if they want to put Maine through another campaign," Gallagher said.

Maine voters in 2009 overturned a bill passed by the Legislature that would have legalized the practice. Thirty other states have passed amendments banning gay marriage.

Last month, gay marriage advocates announced that they'd be gathering signatures necessary to put the measure to a state vote again in Maine.

NOM
By NOM Staff | Posted in Maine, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (2)

Matthew Franck On How The Culture is Failing Young People On Marriage

July 19, 2011 at 9:00 am

In this article adapted from remarks he recently gave before the Love & Fidelity Network, Prof. Franck talks about how we are failing to transmit healthy marital and sexual norms to the next generation (we focus on the marital norms):

In these dystopian societies [described by Plato and Huxley], everything about human sexuality, the complementarity of men and women, and the generation of offspring is broken to the yoke of the city, and made subservient to a single-minded politics of regimentation and control of human choice. And it all happens because a single political principle is pushed without limit until human nature itself is mowed down in its path.

Consider the messages that young people get today, from the colleges they attend, the media culture they swim about in, and even from the laws of the land and the words and deeds of high public officials. Here are fifteen such messages:

3. Everyone is entitled to marry the person he loves (at this particular moment). Coming soon—marriage to the multiple persons one loves!

4. There is no significant difference between men and women with respect to any sexual matter. “Gender” and “identity” are “social constructs,” which we can accept or reject at will.

5. The differentiation of male and female roles is a species of oppression. (Even if you choose the role? What happened to the freedom to choose your identity? Never mind, don’t ask such questions!)

9. Cohabitation before marriage is downright expected, and is a healthy trial run of a relationship.

10. Marriage is optional and certainly not permanent, nor need it be characterized by sexual exclusivity. “Until a loss of interest do us part.” Why should it be work?

11. Out-of-wedlock childbearing is normal and has no adverse consequences, anyway not for you.

13. “A family” is whatever we say one is. Who are you to say different?

14. Where children are wanted and nature does not supply, science can make up the deficit at no moral or social cost (albeit considerable financial expense) by sperm donation, egg donation, surrogacy, in vitro fertilization, etc.

15. Any child can have mommies and/or daddies in any number and combination, by blood, marriage, or adoption. There is no harm in any of these possibilities, for children are blank slates, fully adaptable to all adult choices.

Every one of these fifteen messages is a lie. No lie sustaining the preposterous political orders in Plato and Huxley is worse than any of these, and some are in fact exactly the same—about the sameness of the sexes, the dispensability of marriage, the malleability of children, and so on.

NOM
By NOM Staff | Posted in Children, Culture, Marriage, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (10)

Did Sen. Huntley Flip Her Vote To Avoid Investigation by NY's Pro-SSM Attorney General?

July 19, 2011 at 8:30 am

LetThePeopleVote.comThe New York Post points out that Sen. Shirley Huntley --who flipped on gay marriage this year-- is being investigated by NY Attorney General Eric Schneiderman (an outspoken proponent of SSM) over this:

State Sen. Shirley Huntley (D-Queens) founded The Parent Workshop, to which she steered $30,000. And between 1996 and 2008, she and Cook funneled another $400,000 to another nonprofit, The Parent Information Network, which is run by Huntley’s daughter.

This is why the Post is calling foul:

Member items, earmarks, discretionary funds — by whatever name they’re called, they’re the hundreds of millions of dollars in taxpayer cash that New York lawmakers steer to ostensible community projects but that serve as slush funds for the pols, their families and friends.

Here’s how it works: Legislative leaders dole out cash to their members in return for loyalty, support and votes. The members, in turn, toss the cash around in their districts to buy political backing. That’s corrupt enough.

But lawmakers increasingly steer the money to “nonprofit” groups that they, their relatives and/or their friends control. That makes the whole practice — both in Albany and at City Hall — just another way for pols to line their own pockets and those of friends and family.

NOM
By NOM Staff | Posted in New York, Same Sex Marriage | Comments Off on Did Sen. Huntley Flip Her Vote To Avoid Investigation by NY's Pro-SSM Attorney General?
Home NOM Blog Donate Advocacy Center
Copyright 2011