Feb 5, 2004 / 22:00 pm
A decision by the Massachusetts court this week, which upheld homosexuals’ right to marriage, has strengthened the resolve in Illinois to pass an amendment to the state’s constitution that will maintain the traditional definition of marriage. Illinois Family Institute executive director Peter LaBarbera issued this statement yesterday.
The Illinois Marriage Protection Amendment would deny state recognition to homosexual unions. The amendment emerged from legislation introduced by state Reps. Bill Mitchell (R-Forsyth) and William Grunloh (D-Effingham). Bipartisan support for the amendment in the General Assembly is growing, said LaBarbera.
"Already, homosexual activists are planning trips to Massachusetts to 'marry' on May 20. They will return to states like Illinois and demand government recognition of their counterfeit unions, turning to lawsuits when they are denied,” he said.
LaBarbera also said the rhetoric used by the Massachusetts Judicial Court judge was inappropriate. The 'separate but equal' rhetoric, used by the court, was “once reserved for Americans' noble campaign to end racial discrimination. … To equate the two is to diminish the struggle of Black Americans for equality and to insult all Americans who rightly oppose homosexual conduct by treating them as the moral equivalent of racists.”
"Redefining marriage is like redefining water. It is attempted only through legal contortions that defy natural law,” he said.
The Family Institute has called upon Massachusetts' lawmakers to pass a constitutional amendment protecting marriage, and on Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney to issue an injunction against the court's ruling until state's citizens can vote in a referendum on the matter.
The institute can be contacted at info@illinoisfamily.org