The gay marriage ban passed in the House Committee by a vote of 13 to 4. Two committee members declined to vote. Apparently they believe there is some political advantage to gain by failing to stand for anything.
The four brave souls who voted against the marriage ban are all democrats. They are all women. Three out of four are African American.
Tennessee progressives should remember their names: Kathryn Bowers (D-Memphis), Barbara Cooper (D-Memphis), Joanne Favors (D-Chattanooga) and Beverly Marrero (D-Memphis). (Put these names on your bulletin board!)
The other members of the Children and Family Affairs Committee are: J. DeBerry, S. Jones, Brown, Casada, Cochran, Eldridge, Hill, C. Johnson, Kelsey, Maddox, Maggart, Rowland, Shaw, Mike Turner, and Vaughn.
The four brave souls who voted against the marriage ban are all democrats. They are all women. Three out of four are African American.
Tennessee progressives should remember their names: Kathryn Bowers (D-Memphis), Barbara Cooper (D-Memphis), Joanne Favors (D-Chattanooga) and Beverly Marrero (D-Memphis). (Put these names on your bulletin board!)
The other members of the Children and Family Affairs Committee are: J. DeBerry, S. Jones, Brown, Casada, Cochran, Eldridge, Hill, C. Johnson, Kelsey, Maddox, Maggart, Rowland, Shaw, Mike Turner, and Vaughn.
According to Out & About, “Representative Sherry Jones, widely seen as a supporter of the GLBT community, surprised many when she passed on the vote.” Jones was the only democratic woman who did not oppose the measure.
No one should have been surprised. When the House passed this measure last year, Jones declined to vote. It’s called: Getting re-elected is more important than standing up for what you believe. Granted, it’s hard to determine exactly what Jones believes
What is particularly disturbing is that when the LGBT community held a fundraiser for Jones last summer at the Lipstick Lounge, Jones was billed as a strong opponent of the marriage amendment. According to an email promoting the “Sherry Jones Fundraiser,” distributed by the Tennessee Equality Project:
“Sherry took a strong stand against adding language to our state's constitution to take away rights from women and to ban marriage/union rights for gays and lesbians. We watched as she stood toe to toe with House leadership. Sherry's actions were brave and true.”
It’s true that Jones voted against the civil union ban and against the anti-choice amendment. Unlike the marriage amendment, these two measures had strong opposition and were consequently defeated.
The suggested contribution for the LGBT sponsored fundraiser was $250 per couple.
In an interview featured in the Tennessean last year, Jones was advised that she had been called a “liberal.” The Democratic Rep. responded: “they don’t know me very well.”
The Davidson County Rep. has a point.
Earlier this week the same-sex marriage ban was also passed by the Senate Judiciary committee, by a 7-2 vote (see below). Two Democratic Senators voted against the measure: Steve Cohen (Memphis) and Joe Haynes (Nashville).
It appears likely that the bill will go to a full House and Senate vote next week. The Tennessee legislature is known for working at a much slower pace. According to House committee chairman Rep. John DeBerry, the bill is moving at record speed because legislators have "already heard the voices of the people."
Rep.DeBerry added, "We got a chance to really debate this issue last year and get everything out of our systems. Now everybody knows where they stand and where the other man (sic) stands."
I’m not sure where the debate DeBerry refers to took place; perhaps it was in his living room. The House passed the marriage ban last year with no discussion. The vote was 86-5. Despite Davidson County’s reputation as a liberal or ‘blue’ county, Rob Briley (D) was the only Davidson County Rep. to vote against the marriage ban.
Tennessee democrats have no hesitation when it comes to soliciting money and volunteers from Davidson County, or from the LGBT community, but when it comes time to represent us, Democrats seem to have us confused with the residents of Rhea County.
Members of the LGBT community, from across the state, will arrive at the Capitol next week so that legislators can hear the “voices of the people” affected by this shameful legislation. Billed as “Advancing Equality Day on the Hill”, and organized by the Tennessee Equality Project, the event is set for Tuesday, February 22.
It’s quite possible that when LGBT individuals and families arrive, some from as far away as Knoxville, legislators may be unavailable. At their current pace, they may be voting on the bill of discrimination by Tuesday.
The local mainstream media have been complicit in this shameful effort. There have been no efforts to educate the community or provoke a genuine debate. Instead we’ve heard a lot of vague platitudes about the need to protect heterosexual marriage. Proponents of this view have failed to explain exactly how same-sex marriage threatens heterosexual marriage. We suspect that the men in charge of passing this ban are afraid their wives will abandon them for the love of lesbians.
Remarkably, the Knoxville News Sentinel has recently emerged as arguably the most responsible mainstream media voice on this subject.
Same-sex marriages are already illegal in Tennessee. Legislators claim they need to make them doubly illegal by inserting the ban in the constitution. They reason that a deluge of legally married same-sex couples will come to Tennessee in search of civil rights. This justification for embedding discrimination in the Tennessee constitution is best expressed in the now infamous words of the bill’s sponsor, Senator Jeff Miller: “They could come to Tennessee and claim rights. That’s what I’m afraid of.”
Imagine that, American citizens coming to Tennessee and expecting to have rights. Aren’t we glad our elected officials are working hard to put a stop to this outrage?
The Tennessee General Assembly is obviously determined to make certain that Tennessee continues its long tradition of being the place not to come to if you’re looking for civil rights. Lest any of us forget, it was only a short time ago when Tennessee was the place not to come to if you were an African American in search of civil rights.
If you are not a LGBT citizen or an African American, well, all I can say to you is, be patient. The Tennessee General Assembly will undoubtedly be coming for your rights, just as soon as it finishes off the rights of LGBT citizens.
No one should have been surprised. When the House passed this measure last year, Jones declined to vote. It’s called: Getting re-elected is more important than standing up for what you believe. Granted, it’s hard to determine exactly what Jones believes
What is particularly disturbing is that when the LGBT community held a fundraiser for Jones last summer at the Lipstick Lounge, Jones was billed as a strong opponent of the marriage amendment. According to an email promoting the “Sherry Jones Fundraiser,” distributed by the Tennessee Equality Project:
“Sherry took a strong stand against adding language to our state's constitution to take away rights from women and to ban marriage/union rights for gays and lesbians. We watched as she stood toe to toe with House leadership. Sherry's actions were brave and true.”
It’s true that Jones voted against the civil union ban and against the anti-choice amendment. Unlike the marriage amendment, these two measures had strong opposition and were consequently defeated.
The suggested contribution for the LGBT sponsored fundraiser was $250 per couple.
In an interview featured in the Tennessean last year, Jones was advised that she had been called a “liberal.” The Democratic Rep. responded: “they don’t know me very well.”
The Davidson County Rep. has a point.
Earlier this week the same-sex marriage ban was also passed by the Senate Judiciary committee, by a 7-2 vote (see below). Two Democratic Senators voted against the measure: Steve Cohen (Memphis) and Joe Haynes (Nashville).
It appears likely that the bill will go to a full House and Senate vote next week. The Tennessee legislature is known for working at a much slower pace. According to House committee chairman Rep. John DeBerry, the bill is moving at record speed because legislators have "already heard the voices of the people."
Rep.DeBerry added, "We got a chance to really debate this issue last year and get everything out of our systems. Now everybody knows where they stand and where the other man (sic) stands."
I’m not sure where the debate DeBerry refers to took place; perhaps it was in his living room. The House passed the marriage ban last year with no discussion. The vote was 86-5. Despite Davidson County’s reputation as a liberal or ‘blue’ county, Rob Briley (D) was the only Davidson County Rep. to vote against the marriage ban.
Tennessee democrats have no hesitation when it comes to soliciting money and volunteers from Davidson County, or from the LGBT community, but when it comes time to represent us, Democrats seem to have us confused with the residents of Rhea County.
Members of the LGBT community, from across the state, will arrive at the Capitol next week so that legislators can hear the “voices of the people” affected by this shameful legislation. Billed as “Advancing Equality Day on the Hill”, and organized by the Tennessee Equality Project, the event is set for Tuesday, February 22.
It’s quite possible that when LGBT individuals and families arrive, some from as far away as Knoxville, legislators may be unavailable. At their current pace, they may be voting on the bill of discrimination by Tuesday.
The local mainstream media have been complicit in this shameful effort. There have been no efforts to educate the community or provoke a genuine debate. Instead we’ve heard a lot of vague platitudes about the need to protect heterosexual marriage. Proponents of this view have failed to explain exactly how same-sex marriage threatens heterosexual marriage. We suspect that the men in charge of passing this ban are afraid their wives will abandon them for the love of lesbians.
Remarkably, the Knoxville News Sentinel has recently emerged as arguably the most responsible mainstream media voice on this subject.
Same-sex marriages are already illegal in Tennessee. Legislators claim they need to make them doubly illegal by inserting the ban in the constitution. They reason that a deluge of legally married same-sex couples will come to Tennessee in search of civil rights. This justification for embedding discrimination in the Tennessee constitution is best expressed in the now infamous words of the bill’s sponsor, Senator Jeff Miller: “They could come to Tennessee and claim rights. That’s what I’m afraid of.”
Imagine that, American citizens coming to Tennessee and expecting to have rights. Aren’t we glad our elected officials are working hard to put a stop to this outrage?
The Tennessee General Assembly is obviously determined to make certain that Tennessee continues its long tradition of being the place not to come to if you’re looking for civil rights. Lest any of us forget, it was only a short time ago when Tennessee was the place not to come to if you were an African American in search of civil rights.
If you are not a LGBT citizen or an African American, well, all I can say to you is, be patient. The Tennessee General Assembly will undoubtedly be coming for your rights, just as soon as it finishes off the rights of LGBT citizens.
