100,000 conversations, 100 days to vote no, say marriage amendment foes

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On a recent Sunday, the Minneapolis headquarters of MN United for All Families was abuzz with activity. A phone was ringing at the office reception desk. Volunteers lined cubicles making phone call after phone call to ask whether Minnesota voters supported the idea of same-sex marriage. Any phone banker will tell you it’s all about the art of conversation-a difficult and sensitive one at that.The campaign to Vote No has less than one hundred days to go before voters head to the polls to decide whether Minnesota will join other states in limiting marriage rights by defining it as “one man and one woman.” MN United for All Families is using their grassroots efforts to organize volunteers and supporters. They’re asking folks to, “have a conversation” with someone they know who might be on the fence about this issue.Sonya Kuznetsov says it’s about making a connection with the person on the other end of the call. Continue Reading

Political parties and student groups urge youth to vote

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In 2008, young voters helped make Barack Obama the president. Although the high turnout of people aged 18-29 is not expected to be repeated this year, political parties, campaigns and youth organizations are working hard to make sure that young people make their voices and votes heard.Low turnout rates have always been a pattern with young voters, but Matt Smriga, director of campus organizing with the Minnesota State University Student Association, works to change that. MSUSA is a non-partisan, non-profit organization that educates youth on how to vote and why it’s important.“Our democracy doesn’t work if people aren’t really paying attention and very few people are showing up to vote,” Smriga said.Youth confused about how to voteAccording to Smriga, the biggest reason young people don’t vote is because of their confusion over the polling process.“By far the most important thing to do is just educating young people about how to vote — what the process is,” Smriga said. “For whatever reason, that’s incredibly intimidating for someone who has never voted before.”Younger voters sometimes trivialize the voting process because they don’t know how to navigate it, he said. His job is to devise programs to show them the ropes, in order to make voting more accessible and less complex.This is why he and MSUSA oppose the Voter ID Amendment that will be on the ballot this November.“If you add a whole other set of rules, and regulations, and steps that young people need to take, that’s really going to negatively impact their turnout rate,” Smriga said.Social networking hot tool for campaigns wooing young votersMeanwhile, presidential campaigns are working on securing the votes of youth. Continue Reading

Faith and justice: A Catholic family struggles with the Minnesota marriage amendment

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If people take a look at Teresa Naughton’s background, they would correctly conclude that she supports the proposed constitutional amendment that would define marriage in Minnesota as the union of one man and one woman.A devoted Catholic with five children, she has been married for almost 25 years to her husband Michael, who teaches at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul.But her decision was not an easy one. “So many of us are struggling with our own understanding, and it’s confusing,” she said.Teresa Naughton has known gay couples with wonderful relationships and children. She doesn’t oppose gays as individuals and “truly wants to love them.”But she believes that same-sex couples raising children are inherently different from heterosexual couples with children. Continue Reading

OPINION | Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie scores a rare victory in the language war with change to Marriage Amendment wording on ballot

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Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie achieved a small but noteworthy victory last week. He won a round in the conservative language wars. This doesn’t happen often enough and it merits closer examination.During the 2011 legislative session, conservative policy leaders passed a state constitutional ballot initiative defining marriage within a narrow conservative framework.Their constitutional amendment question was “Shall the Minnesota Constitution be amended to provide that only a union of one man and one woman shall be valid or recognized as a marriage in Minnesota?” The proposed ballot title was “Recognition of Marriage Solely Between One Man and One Woman.” It would be the first line seen by voters.Ritchie exercised his constitutional authority to create a different title. Continue Reading

THREE ISSUES | A Minnesotan’s candid thoughts on the 2012 state election

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Willie is an employee of the FATHER project, a Minneapolis organization that assists fathers in overcoming barriers that prevent them from supporting their children economically and emotionally. He had some interesting thoughts on the upcoming state elections.FP: “What are some concerns, concepts, or issues that you hope to see addressed in the upcoming state elections?”W: “Well, certainly the state budget, especially regarding education. The two proposed amendments to the state constitution definetely worry me. Both proposed amendments seem designed to discriminate against people….”FP: “What makes you feel that way?”W: “Well, we as a country, from the founding fathers on forward, have placed a premium on progressing human rights, from ending human slavery, to expanding voting rights across race and gender, and so on and so forth. So to me, the proposed voter ID constitutional amendment is just a way to restrict segments of our voting population. Continue Reading

Confused about marriage

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Minnesotans are gathering in kitchens and living rooms across the state to talk about gay marriage. Here is a slice of the conversation.  Video by Pam Colby and Joah Colby, voices by Terry Gydesen and Janet Bayliss.

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