Same-sex marriage allies, foes file in court

[central scrutinizer]

http://www.registerguard.com/news/2004/11/19/a1.gaymarriage.1119.html

excerpted paragraphs:

Gay couples may not be allowed to marry in Oregon, but they're still entitled to all the legal benefits that married couples enjoy, the American Civil Liberties Union argues in a new legal brief filed with the state Supreme Court.

The court should order the Legislature to pass a law creating a civil union alternative to marriage for same-sex couples, and also recognize as legal the nearly 3,000 marriage licenses issued to same-sex couples by Multnomah County last spring, the civil liberties group contends.

But a competing brief filed by the Defense of Marriage Coalition says gay rights advocates can't change in legal midstream and now push for civil unions. Furthermore, the 3,000 licenses have never been valid and should be voided, the group says.

end excerpt...........
and there is also a related op-ed in the same paper:

http://www.registerguard.com/news/2004/11/19/ed.col.weiner.1119.html

excerpt from that piece:

Guest Viewpoint: Will Measure 36 end all marriages in Oregon?
By Merle Weiner
With the passage of Measure 36, Oregonians have said that marriage shall not be extended to same-sex couples. The voters probably did not realize that heterosexual marriage is now threatened.

How can that be? After all, opponents of same-sex marriage said exactly the opposite: Same-sex marriage was supposed to threaten opposite-sex marriage.

The irony is the logical result of an application of the Equal Benefits Clause of the Oregon Constitution, something that Measure 36 did not change in any way. That provision says, "No law shall be passed granting to any citizen or class of citizens privileges or immunities, which, upon the same terms, shall not equally belong to all citizens."

bwah hah hah hah hah hah hah hah hah neener neener.......

[Maat]

1. Yeah! And I'm proud to say I contributed financially to that

effort. Great bunch of constitutional lawyers and scholars. Don't know what we'd do without them.