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Arizona House Bill HB 2481: Another Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing

 Joseph Connolly - Joe
Op/Ed by Joe Connolly

Call to Action! One battle was won this week in the defeat of Arizona SB 1062. The war is NOT over! Seriously!  Arizona State Representative Steve Montenegro, R-Litchfield Park has introduced Arizona House Bill HB 2481.

As a person of faith, I know that any ordained minister, priest or pastor can refuse to marry any couple, straight or gay, for any reason. Government cannot tell a church how to run its ministry. It's called Freedom of Religion. It's in a document called the U. S. Constitution. And the Arizona Constitution cites it as the "supreme law of the land". Rep. Montenegro has sponsored this bill and he himself is a pastor in an Apostolic Church. On the surface it seems innocuous but it too has implications and unintended consequences like SB1062. Initially I was upset that a pastor was writing legislation for himself. Until *I* read the bill.... 

On the surface, HB 2481 is trying to put "protections" in place for "religious" leaders who may not want to "solemnize a marriage". It is being presented as a bill to protect religious leaders from having to perform marriage they may not want to do. Sound familiar? 

The reality of this bill is far from the truth. Passage of this bill will allow the following people, defined in Arizona Revised Statutes 25-124 to refuse to marry not only same sex couples but any couple they have issue with. Currently same sex marriage is not legal in Arizona.  HB 2481 is a preemptive law anticipating that Arizona laws banning same sex marriage will be overturned. HB 2481 will allow discrimination "when" the ban on same sex marriage is overturned in Arizona (and even before). Like SB1062, the wording of the bill is misleading and it appears to be putting protections in place just for religious leaders. In fact, it is attempting to legalize discrimination, allowing state and federal employees the right to discriminate. 

Under HB 2481, all of the following people would be allowed to refuse to "solemnize a marriage this is inconsistent with the minister's sincerely held religious beliefs". If you're saying to yourself, "Here we go again", well you would be correct. 

25-124. Persons authorized to perform marriage ceremony; definition

A. The following are authorized to solemnize marriages between persons who are authorized to marry:

  1. Duly licensed or ordained clergymen.
  2. Judges of courts of record.
  3. Municipal court judges.
  4. Justices of the peace.
  5. Justices of the United States supreme court.
  6. Judges of courts of appeals, district courts and courts that are created by an act of Congress if the judges are entitled to hold office during good behavior.
  7. Bankruptcy court and tax court judges.
  8. United States magistrate judges.
  9. Judges of the Arizona court of military appeals.

B. For the purposes of this section, "licensed or ordained clergymen" includes ministers, elders or other persons who by the customs, rules and regulations of a religious society or sect are authorized or permitted to solemnize marriages or to officiate at marriage ceremonies.

Judges and Justices of the Peace who are employed by a local, state government or any court should never be allowed to discriminate and refuse to perform marriage ceremonies for same sex couples, bi-racial couples, a marriage of a Jew/Christian/Muslim/Buddhist , etc. (pick 2).

Here are the Arizona Representatives who have put their name on this bill

Representatives Montenegro, Allen, Barton, Borrelli, Boyer, Farnsworth E, Forese, Gowan, Kavanagh, Kwasman, Mitchell, Olson, Petersen, Seel, Smith, Stevens, Thorpe, Townsend, Senators Burges, Crandell, Farnsworth D, Griffin, Melvin, Ward: Representatives Fann, Gray, Livingston, Lovas, Mesnard, Shope, Senators Biggs, Murphy, Pierce, Shooter, Worsley

Here's what you need to do. Please commit to taking action:

  1. Tell these representatives to withdraw this bill. Find your representative and tell them to VOTE NO. 
  2. Ask Governor Brewer to intervene and kill this bill, before it ever gets to her desk. 
  3. Tell you representative, if they want to make Arizona a better place, put additional protections in Arizona laws include sexual orientation or gender identity. 

FIND YOUR ARIZONA LEGISLATOR

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Same-Sex Marriage and ChildrenSame-Sex Marriage and Children is the first book to bring together historical, social science, and legal considerations to comprehensively respond to the objections to same-sex marriage that are based on the need to promote so-called "responsible procreation" and child welfare. Carlos A. Ball places the current marriage debates within a broader historical context by exploring how the procreative and child welfare claims used to try to deny same-sex couples the opportunity to marry are similar to earlier arguments used to defend interracial marriage bans, laws prohibiting disabled individuals from marrying, and the differential treatment of children born out of wedlock. Ball also draws a link between welfare reform and same-sex marriage bans by explaining how conservative proponents have defended both based on the need for the government to promote responsible procreation among heterosexuals. 

In addition, Ball examines the social science studies relied on by opponents of same-sex marriage and explains in a highly engaging and accessible way why they do not support the contention that biological status and parental gender matter when it comes to parenting. He also explores the relevance of the social science studies on the children of lesbians and gay men to the question of whether same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry. In doing so, the book looks closely at the gay marriage cases that recently reached the Supreme Court and explains why the constitutionality of same-sex marriage bans cannot be defended on the basis that maintaining marriage as an exclusively heterosexual institution helps to promote the best interests of children. Same-Sex Marriage and Children will help lawyers, law professors, judges, legislators, social and political scientists, historians, and child welfare officials-as well as general readers interested in matters related to marriage and families-understand the empirical and legal issues behind the intersection of same-sex marriage and children's welfare.
© 2014 Arizona Equality