LBGT Discriminatory Amendments on the Ballot this November

Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.
-Martin Luther King, Jr.


I am sure by now you have all heard about California's Prop 8, which if passed, would eliminate the right of Same-Sex Couples to Marry in California. However, California is not the only state dealing with anti-gay and discriminatory amendments on the ballot in this election, other states such as Arizona, Florida and Arkansas, are also fighting for LGBT rights.

Arizona
Arizona's GLBT population is dealing with Proposition 102, also known by its supporters as the Marriage Protection Amendment. If enacted, it would amend the Arizona Constitution to define marriage as between one man and one woman.

Arizona is the only state whose voters have rejected a same-sex marriage ban in past elections. The 2006 rejection of Proposition 107 was widely attributed to provisions interpreted to prohibit government recognition of domestic partnerships and civil unions.


Florida
Florida is facing their own Marriage Protection Amendment, known as Proposition 2. The official text states, "This amendment protects marriage as the legal union of only one man and one woman as husband and wife and provides that no other legal union that is treated as marriage or the substantial equivalent thereof shall be valid or recognized." The one positive thing I could find about this amendment, is that in Florida for this proposition to pass, the it will require a 60% majority.


Arkansas

The state of Arkansas is not dealing with same-sex marriage this year, instead, they are dealing with a nasty adoption ban called the Unmarried Couple Adoption Ban. This is a citizen-initiated state statute that would make it illegal for any individual cohabiting outside of a valid marriage to adopt or provide foster care to minors. While the measure was designed to prohibit same-sex couples from being adoptive or foster parents, this measure would also apply to all otherwise qualified couples who are not legally married.



Sources:
Florida Dept of State Elections Division
Arkansas Ballot Measures
California Secretary of State