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By Scott Nicholson
A local group is planning a response to the defeat of Proposition
8 legislation, staging a same-sex marriage ceremony and planning
to request marriage licenses from the county.
BooneImpact has scheduled the event as part of a National
Freedom To Marry Day, a response to California’s Proposition
8 vote that restricted the definition of “marriage”
to opposite-sex couples.
BooneImpact and its supporters are gathering at 11:30 a.m.
on Feb. 12 at the Watauga County Courthouse in Boone. An hour
later, lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender couples are exchanging
marriage vows and then requesting marriage licenses from the
Clerk of Court’s office.
The National Freedom To Marry Day is an effort of Marriage
Equality USA, which formed in 2000 to promote legally recognized
civil marriage equality for all, at both the federal and state
level.
BooneImpact held a rally and march last November in Boone
and has had informational tables at Appalachian State University.
The organization’s members have also signed petitions asking
Pres. Barack Obama to repeal the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act
that limited marriage to opposite-sex couples. The group meets
weekly, though it holds an affiliation with any national group
called Impact, and stages monthly public actions.
“We just want anybody who wants to come out and show support
or wants to participate in the ceremony,” said Amy Burnette,
a member of BooneImpact. “We’re just a group of people
who are trying to raise awareness.”
At least five couples are expected to hold a marriage ceremony,
with others interested, Burnette said. The group is seeking
volunteers to hand out literature and hold signs, and welcomes
any same-sex couple that wants to participate in the ceremony.
For more information, contact booneimpact@googlegroups.com
or call (828)234-0795 or (828) 719-8206.
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