Despite a favorable court ruling for conservatives, the debate over “gay marriage” in Maryland apparently is far from over.
Several Democrats, including state Sen. Gwendolyn Britt and Del. Victor Ramirez, say they will sponsor bills that would legalize “gay marriage” when the General Assembly meets against next year, the Montgomery County Sentinel reported. Their action comes after the Maryland Court of Appeals — the highest court in the state — refused in a September 4-3 decision to legalize “gay marriage.”
Conservative Maryland lawmakers [have] promised to reintroduce a constitutional amendment that would make clear that marriage is an institution limited to heterosexual couples, an amendment that has stalled in committee in years past. Del. Donald H. Dwyer Jr., an Anne Arundel County Republican, has been at the forefront of past efforts to pass a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage. While he called yesterday “a wonderful day” in the wake of the court ruling, he wasn’t dialing back the rhetoric. Even though the court agreed with his stance, he still thinks a constitutional amendment — which would have to be approved by voters — is a necessity.
Maryland’s highest court has upheld a state statute that defines marriage as the union between one man and one woman. On September 18th, 2007, the Maryland Court of Appeals reaffirmed the state’s long-standing marriage statute by overturning a lower circuit court’s January 2006 decision that would have allowed homosexuals to “marry”.
In the 4-3 decision, the Court of Appeals cited the government’s interest in “safeguarding an environment most conducive to the stable propagation and continuance of the human race” as a reason for the decision. The court further concluded that since homosexual practices do not qualify as “immutable characteristics”, there is no “fundamental right to marry” afforded to homosexuals.
A public school districtÂ’s program promoting anal sex, homosexuality, bisexuality, and transvestitism as normal sexual variations was recently approved by the Maryland State Board of Education despite strenuous opposition from several pro-family groups. Montgomery County Public SchoolÂ’s controversial sexuality curriculum for eighth and tenth grade students is the result of pressure by homosexual advocacy groups. In response, the Thomas More Law Center, a national public interest law firm based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, announced today that it will assist the pro-family groups in their appeal of the Education BoardÂ’s decision to the Montgomery County Circuit Court.
In its ruling last week regarding a controversial sexuality curriculum in Montgomery County, the Maryland State Board of Education (MBOE) has implicitly authorized local school boards to promote ‘sexual diversity’ to students and teach about anal sex while excluding warnings of the medical dangers pertaining to such practices.
