Twin Cities Daily Planet (https://www.tcdailyplanet.net/tag/lgbtqia/page/14/)
Native American voters may be in the minority across the country. But, in Minneapolis, Minnesota which has one of the highest concentration of Native Americans in the country, their votes on local issues and candidates add up, and politicians are paying attention.
Throughout history and among diverse cultures there have been many forms of marriage, from Abraham’s polygamous marriage with 12 women to today’s monogamous unions. However, one theme is universally constant. The main purpose of marriage is to legitimize and care for children. If marriage is about shaping the best platform on which to raise children, then the question is not whether same-sex marriage is morally right, but does it allow for the successful raising of children?Minnesotans for Marriage argues by allowing same-sex marriage “the interests of children – and therefore society’s intrinsic interest in marriage – is eliminated entirely.” They claim same-sex parents cannot compare to straight parents. They demand Minnesotans fight for the rights of children by preserving families, consisting of a mother and father.We must fight to protect family. I was raised in a family where I learned traditional American values, such as dedication, hard work, compassion, and love. My family ate together every night, read hundreds of books out loud, made pancakes on Saturdays and went to church on Sundays. My parents incorporated kindness into daily life, whether it be taking care of injured animals or working with the mentally ill, the elderly and disabled kids. Continue Reading
We carved pumpkins. It won’t surprise you to know that I was going to carve VOTE NO into mine. I went to work diligently, not paying much attention to what my clan was up to. The T was giving me trouble. My knife slipped and I had to re-group. I had three letters left. I paused long enough to look around and noticed Big Man had some intricate spider and web-thing going on and Thing 1 was working on the silhouette of a cat next to a pumpkin. The cat would have a witch hat on it’s head. Continue Reading
With only days left to the election, both sides of the marriage amendment fight continue to draw millions of dollars in contributions, surpassing $13 million overall.
The case against the Marriage and the Elections amendments can be made on many grounds. But one argument often overlooked is that their proposal and perhaps adoption by the people represents what America’s constitutional framers feared most–the tyranny of the majority. Continue Reading
Earlier this fall, Richard Herod put a Minnesotans United For all Families yard sign in front of his home that encouraged citizens to “Vote No” on the amendment that would constitutionally outlaw same-sex marriage in the state (gay marriage isn’t currently legal here). But Herod’s townhouse association sent an email asking him to take down the yard sign.
Part of the trouble with releasing an album on Election Day is that a lot of my energy and ink is put toward promoting that, rather than the obviously-more-important election. But before we get to a deluge of music videos and promos and reviews and all that, here are my thoughts on 2012: Continue Reading
Elections are days away; and a lot is at stake. The two constitutional amendments on the ballot this November are clear in their intent to disenfranchise and discriminate against segments of our population. Shades of Yellow (SOY) is a St. Paul-based GLBTQ advocacy organization that has been campaigning for the past year to defeat the marriage amendment. In this show, Bruce Thao and Nhia Vang talk about SOY’s decision to take on marriage equality as a platform to advocate for other issues like poverty and family acceptance, affecting the Hmong and Southeast Asian GLBTQ community. [Audio below]
The job of editing a newspaper entails certain compromises and the occasional pangs of conscience.
It’s down to it. The fight over the two anti-rights amendments to the Minnesota constitution will be discussed for years to come – and not just in the state. Continue Reading