Some of you who are old enough may remember the "Virginia is for Lovers" slogan concocted back in 1969 by the State of Virginia and still around to this day. You may also remember Maryland's quirky response:
I'm here to report that momentum is building fast for the Maryland legislature to pass a marriage equality bill which will make Maryland equally attractive to crab afficionados and those who love people of the same sex, while finally putting Virginia to shame.
A bill, SB 116 (pdf) was recently introduced into the Maryland Senate, in part reading
Only a marriage between a man and a woman TWO INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE NOT OTHERWISE PROHIBITED FROM MARRYING is valid in this State.
And just today, Senator and former Senate Minority Leader Allan Kittleman (R), announced that he would support the bill. That makes him the only Republican of 12 (out of 47 total Senators) to be in favor of equality, but it may be enough.
His support is also an important reminder that not every Republican legislator in the United States has to be a bigot -- there are actually Republicans out there who believe in the 14th amendment. Reminding his colleagues of his father's history and his own committment to equality, Kittleman noted in an eloquent statement released today:
I was raised by a gentleman who joined with others in fighting racial discrimination in the 1950s and 1960s," Kittleman said. "Watching him fight for civil rights instilled in me the belief that everyone, regardless of race, sex, national origin or sexual orientation, is entitled to equal rights...
As a strong proponent of personal and economic liberty/freedom, I simply could not, in good conscience, vote against SB 116...
Ultimately, it was my strong feelings about civil rights that led me to decide to support SB 116.
With Kittleman's vote and 35 Democrats in the Maryland Senate, things would seem to be looking good. Not so fast. According to John Wagner of the Washington Post,
the vote is expected to be very close...
With Kittleman, only twenty three of out thirty five Democratic Senators (66%) need to step up for equality; if so the bill will almost certainly become law (passage in the House is expected to be easier). Despite this supermajority the vote is expected to be very close.
And this is before NOM has had its chance to spew its hate-filled propaganda across the state and into legislators' ears. Just today NOM sent out an Action Alert to its followers:
The Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee will be holding a hearing on the same-sex marriage bill (SB116) next Tuesday afternoon, starting at 1:00pm. The hearing will be held in Room 2 in the East Wing of the Miller Senate Office Building (11 Bladen Street) in Annapolis.
This hearing and the subsequent committee vote is our first chance to derail the same-sex marriage bill -- and throwing a major wrench in the plans of activists who have virtually guaranteed that they would push same-sex marriage through in Maryland this year.
along with additional instructions to call Senators, send emails, and attend the hearing. And, by the way
Be sure to mention it to your friends at church this weekend, too.
There are other battles for marriage equality going on now -- in Rhode Island and New Hampshire especially. But none are likely to move as fast and furious as the battle in Maryland, where the legislature only meets for 90 days a year.
If you want to help, Equality Maryland is probably the place to start. If you're in Maryland, they give you an easy way to contact your representatives.
If the bill becomes law, the battle will have only begun, believe it or not. Maryland has a provision similar to Maine's, in which if a group can gather enough signatures a law will be prevented from going into effect and it will be subject to a vote of the people.
You can be sure NOM will stop at nothing to gather those signatures and if the bill does pass it is very likely that a referendum on marriage equality will take place in 2012. It could well be the first time the people of a state will vote for marriage equality (the latest poll shows 51% in favor, 44% opposed). But, as events in Maine and California have shown all too well, polling can not be trusted and nothing can be taken for granted.
Get ready.