Coalition forms to pursue initiative against gay rights

      SALEM – The involvement of concerned churches will be critical to efforts to overturn Oregon’s new gay rights laws, according to organizers of a new coalition behind the initiative.
      Petitions are being readied to be available to churches, groups and individuals that seek to stop House Bill 2007 – which creates legal domestic partnerships, giving state benefits of marriage to same-sex couples – and Senate Bill 2, which bans discrimination based on sexual orientation in housing, work and public places such as restaurants.
      In a Salem ceremony filled with celebration by gay-rights supporters, Gov. Ted Kulongoski early last month signed the two bills into law. But if the coalition collects the required petition signatures, the date that the new gay-rights laws become effective would be postponed from Jan. 1, 2008, until Oregon residents vote on them in the Nov. 4, 2008 general election.
      The petitions have been filed and approved by the Oregon secretary of state for circulation, which will begin in the coming days.
      The coalition at this point is a joint effort of two groups but also is likely to eventually include other groups statewide.
      One group is called “Defense of Marriage and Family, AGAIN.” That name reflects its members’ belief that the new gay-rights laws seek to negate the strong position taken by a majority of Oregon voters when, in 2004, they specified that marriage was to be between one man and one woman. That successful campaign was strongly backed by evangelical Christian groups.
      The other group is called Concerned Oregonians. Among those in the coalition are the Constitution Party of Oregon, members of Slavic churches in the Willamette Valley, and Marilyn Shannon of Brooks, a former state legislator. The Constitution Party last month initially announced plans to pursue its own initiative but quickly joined the coalition instead.
      About 75,000 signatures will be needed for each referendum to ensure that the 55,179 valid signature requirement per referendum is met.
Those signatures must be collected within the 90 days after the current legislative session adjourns in Salem. Adjournment is expected by June 30; if it occurs about that time, signature gathering would have to be complete by the end of September.
      Those behind the coalition say the initiative try is necessary because they see the two new gay rights laws as an affront to the majority of Oregonians, particularly HB 2007, which they say ignores and rejects the will of the people of Oregon as clearly demonstrated in Measure 36.
In the 2004 vote with Measure 36, Oregonians by a 57 to 43 percent margin determined that marriage is between a man and woman only.
      Members of the coalition say that vote did not mean that Oregonians were in favor of same-sex “civil unions” or same sex “domestic partners.” The new gay rights laws completely ignore the will of the people, they contend.
      On the other hand, Basic Rights Oregon, the state’s largest gay-rights group, told The Oregonian that initiative efforts to overturn the new laws are being undertaken by a “few individuals” who are out of step with the values of most Oregonians.
      Chief petitioners on the proposed initiative are Janice Bentson of Keizer, Aleksandr Voronko of Salem and Carolyn Wendell of Stayton.
      The formation of the coalition followed a decision last month by the Oregon Family Council not to take the lead in pursuing a referendum.
      In a letter to council supporters, pastors of four of the larger churches in the Portland area acknowledged that the new laws are “deeply troubling. They legitimize a lifestyle that Scripture clearly condemns and we believe holds troubling consequences for Oregon’s future.”
      But the pastoral advisory board determined several reasons for its decision:
     • the new laws were the result of an open, public process, even if the outcome was disappointing.
     • the high number of bills in the current legislative session that are of deep concern to Christian leaders, which threaten to spawn other costly initiative challenges and overrun churches with political activity.
     • the deeply divisive nature of the gay rights debate, which some churches believe could “hinder their influence within their communities.”
      But the coalition is comprised of other evangelical Christians who believe they would be remiss not to take a stand against what the Legislature has done.     They say an initiative campaign is winnable, but it will take faith, as well as perhaps close to a million dollars in donations eventually to mount an effective effort.
      David Crowe of Tigard, one of those active in the new coalitiion, said churches will play a key role in the campaign.
     “Absolutely,” he said. “We want to do the same thing that we did (in 2004) with Measure 36.”
      Individuals, groups and churches wanting to know more about the initiative effort should phone 1-800-355-7047 after June 1 or e-mail david_crowe@comcast.net.