Document text
55 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, December 9, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend November 4, 2004 Gay-marriage advocates lament constitutional ban By SARAH LEMON Mail Tribune A day after Oregon voters said she has no right to get married, Tonja Andreatta couldn’t bear to see Measure 36 signs still up around town. "I feel confronted on every corner," Andreatta said. "It just feels crazy." Oregonians approved a ban on same-sex marriages Tuesday 57 percent yes to 43 percent no (868,952 to 658,100). Similar laws passed in 10 other states by much wider margins. Oregon’s ballot measure amends the state Constitution to define marriage as solely between a man and a woman. Although she and her partner of more than four years married in Multnomah County this spring, Andreatta, 36, wasn’t outspoken about stopping a citizen initiative to ban gay marriage. She barely worked up the nerve to put a "no" sign in her window because she didn’t want to jeopardize her local business of building water features. But her partner’s interest in that business is now what’s in jeopardy, she said. Sarah Minshall, 31, helped Andreatta build the enterprise up from nothing. The couple would just like assurance that Minshall would inherit it in the event of Andreatta’s death. Advertisement "If we were a man and a woman, she would automatically be entitled to everything," Andreatta said. Proponents of the same-sex marriage ban say the ballot measure has no effect on rights that gay and lesbian couples could have under state-sanctioned civil unions. "They have just about all of (the rights) if they go through an attorney," said Relfe Patterson, a member of the Jackson County Republican Central Committee. "They can do whatever they want." But members of the Rogue Valley’s homosexual community said civil unions don’t offer any guarantees. The constitutional amendment is just another example of discrimination against gays and lesbians, they say. "Probably in our 15 years, this is the saddest day of our lives," said George Miller-Zauner. The 57-year-old Central Point resident got a marriage license application in March to marry his partner, Stephen, in Jackson County before county officials decided same-sex marriages were not lawful. "We still don’t understand where all this hatred comes from," he said. For some local religious leaders, the ban is an affirmation of their beliefs. "I’m very pleased to see that it passed," said the Rev. Liam Cary, calling marriage the "fundamental institution of our society." The priest of Medford’s Sacred Heart Catholic Church said he didn’t tell his congregation how to vote but urged them to consider Catholic teaching on the matter. Ashland Unitarian Minister Patt Herdklotz said she wished she could have done more to defeat the ballot measure. "It’s a no-brainer that this definition makes same-sex marriage people second-class citizens." Herdklotz said. Herdklotz has performed same-sex marriages in Ashland’s Unitarian-Universalist Church since 1983 and will continue that practice, she said. The belief that heterosexual couples would be threatened by same-sex marriage is "absurd," she said. Andreatta, a Medford resident, said she works for many people who likely voted for the measure but who still eagerly welcome her into their homes knowing she’s a lesbian. "When people know me, that changes their mind about who they think gay people are," she said. "It has to come to this to spur change." Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities