The Bunker

More fence sitting from Senator Levin:


July 21, 2003
Dear Ms. Blough,


Thank you for contacting me about the proposed Constitutional amendment relating to marriage. I appreciate hearing your views on the subject.


This issue was addressed through the Defense of Marriage Act (P.L.104-199), which was signed into law by President Clinton on September 21, 1996. I voted for this law because I support the continuation of the legal definition of marriage as a union between a man and a woman.


In the history of our country, only 27 Constitutional amendments have been ratified, the first 10 of which were ratified as the Bill of Rights in 1791. Since then, despite the introduction of more than 11,000 Constitutional amendments in Congress and over 200 years of social, political and economic progress, the constitution has been amended only 17 additional times. James Madison, one of architects of the Constitution, wrote that constitutional amendments should be reserved for "great and extraordinary occasions." It does not require a constitutional amendment to afford legal protection to a civil union between persons of the same sex, an action which I favor.


Thanks again for writing.


Sincerely

Carl Levin


Gee... thanks for the history lesson, Mr. Levin. While I agree that constitutional amendments should be rare, civil unions do not provide the access to federal protections that civil marriage does. Same-sex couples want what every couple wants, namely the right to receive the full protections bestowed by the state and federal government that come through marriage and the public recognition of their lifetime commitment.


It saddens me that after "over 200 years of social, political and economic progress", current law still discriminates against people for things they cannot change. A history of discrimination is no excuse for continued discrimination.