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Protect marriage from violence – vote yes on HJR2
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“A marriage between a man and a woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized in this state.”
This one sentence has ignited a firestorm of controversy across the state.
HJR2, the “marriage amendment,” would add these words to Idaho’s constitution if passed by voters this Tuesday, Nov. 7.
What immediate effect would this have on the citizens of Idaho?
None – state law (Idaho Code 32-201) already defines marriage as being “between a man and a woman.”
This constitutional amendment would simply ensure that no activist judge could wrongly interpret existing law as well as reaffirm Idaho’s longstanding protection of the institution of marriage.
The small but vocal Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgendered, Queer community around the city of Boise and here at Boise State University are up in arms at the idea of Idaho citizens protecting marriage.
Whether it’s a lone handing out rainbow-colored pamphlets in the Student Union or a visiting professor debating a speaker from Focus on the Family, the GLBTQ message is always excatly the same.
HJR2 is an evil amendment that will turn GLBTQ members into second-class citizens and destroy Idaho children’s chance to be raised in the loving family environment of a GLBTQ household.
Truth is though, they are wrong and they know it.
HJR2 doesn’t even affect the current legal status of GLBTQ members, and they’re not second-class citizens.
GLBTQ activists claim that they are denied joint parenting rights, joint ownership of property rights, inheritance rights, hospital visitation rights and medical decision rights rights to name just a few things they are concerned about.
These don’t require marriage, just one simple legal document: a durable power of attorney. Any lawyer can do this for about $50 bucks.
The second-class citizen argument is a myth.
Anti-protection of marriage activists will tell you that GLBTQ homes are no different than traditional homes. They tell you that Idaho children would be lucky to find themselves in the warm, caring environment of a homosexual home.
Scientific data disagrees.
According to a Bureau of Justice Statistics’ Special Report titled “Intimate Partner Violence,” only 0.26 percent of married women experience violence at the hands of their intimate partner while the number rises dramatically to 11.4 percent for lesbian couples.
In male homosexuals the increase in violence is even more shocking – rising from 0.05 percent for married men to 15.4 percent for gay couples.
Not only are gay men more abusive, they’re also six and one half times more likely than straight men to have experienced mental health issues and attempted suicide, according to a study by R. Herrel published in the 1999 “Archives of General Psychiatry.”
Do we really want to legalize adoption into violent, suicidal, abusive homes?
If traditional marriage is not protected in Idaho, this could happen.
HJR2 will help prevent Idaho’s kids from being adopted into homes that are statistically predicated to domestic violence.
There are many more reasons to vote for the defense of marriage.
I ask you to consider them all.
Don’t listen to the rhetoric of groups like GLBTQ.
Protect Idaho’s children and the sanctity of marriage by voting yes on HJR2.
JONATHAN SAWMILLER
Opinion Writer
