Minnesota Public Interest Research Group, MPIRG, is the organization on campus that has decided to put all their effort in defeating the two constitutional amendments on this year’s ballot. The marriage amendment is hurtful to our LGBTQ friends, family, and members of MPIRG. We want to show our support because we believe love is love and there should not be a definition for it. Defining a marriage as a union between a man and a woman limits the freedom to marry and MPIRG is loving and supportive toward the LGBTQ community.
Oct. 11 marks Coming Out Day. The GLBTQA Commission is hosting a Coming Out Day Luncheon for students, faculty, staff, community members, and the like. This is a celebration for the LGBTQ community because “coming out” literally changes their lives. The guest speakers will be UMD Women’s Hockey Coach Shannon Miller and student Canyon Bachan.
The Coming Out Day Luncheon is a celebration of the people who have “come out” and also a celebration for their allies. It is a really important day for the LGBTQ community because there are many places where one may not feel accepted. Being able to share “coming out” stories with one another is great when you have the love and support from not only friends but from the university you attend, the place you work, and the community you live in.
MPIRG fully supports this event because we not only have LGBTQ members in our group, but coming out to people can be very hard for some and we understand this. Our organization wants to defeat this amendment because we do not want something to harm our LGBTQ family. An amendment like this will show Minnesota LGBTQ people that their families aren’t good enough, and that shouldn’t be the case.
Even though same-sex marriage is illegal in Minnesota, adding this to the state constitution will make it even harder in the future for same-sex couples to marry. If Minnesota doesn’t show love and support for the LGBTQ community by voting NO, we will also hurt the young LGBTQ teens in high school.
High school can be really rough for a young gay teen. If Minnesota doesn’t accept the LGBTQ community for who they are it shows these young teens that they are not accepted. It shows them that they need to hide who they are. This can be a crucial stage for some, especially if it’s during their “coming out” process. But if Minnesota shows their acceptance and defeats this amendment then it is a step in the right direction for the LGBTQ community.
MPIRG and its members are firm believers in grassroots campaigns and we encourage you to talk amongst your friends, family, and colleagues about what this amendment will do. We can defeat this, just vote NO.
BY Alexa McIndoe mcind006@d.umn.edu