Oshkosh Man Joins Board of Statewide Equal Rights Group to Help Fight
[We received this press release and would like to send out our congratulations to Aaron on his appointment to the board of directors.]
For Immediate Release: July 27, 2005
Madison -- The campaign against a state constitutional ban on civil unions and marriage for gay couples gained steam today with the announcement that Oshkosh resident Aaron Sherer has joined the board of Action Wisconsin. Action Wisconsin is the statewide advocate for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people and is leading the campaign against the amendment.
Sherer moved to Wisconsin from Massachusetts with his partner Paul Smith in 2002. They live in Oshkosh, where Sherer is the director of the Paine Art Center and Gardens, and Smith teaches special education at West High School. Sherer says, “When we moved here, the rights of gay citizens were essentially identical in both states. Now, Massachusetts offers full marriage equality for gay couples, while Wisconsin is moving towards banning all legal protections for our family.”
"Having Aaron join the board will be a major boost to our effort to increase support for equality in the Oshkosh area," said Action Wisconsin executive director Christopher Ott.
The proposed constitutional amendment is likely to be on the November 2006 state-wide ballot. Lawmakers passed it once in March 2004, but the Legislature must approve it a second time before it goes before voters in a statewide election.
The amendment would not only permanently ban marriage for gay couples but would also foreclose the possibility of civil unions in Wisconsin, which could offer many of the rights of marriage. States that have already passed similar amendments are seeing them used to overturn domestic partner health insurance policies and domestic violence safeguards for unmarried heterosexuals.
Sherer’s primary reason for serving on the board of Action Wisconsin is to help defeat the amendment in the Oshkosh area. “We like living here and would like to stay. We think we’re making a contribution to our community. But this amendment goes too far. Paul and I are each other’s family, and this amendment would hurt our ability to take care of one another.”
Sherer also serves on the boards of the Oshkosh United Way and the Fox Valley Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Appleton. The Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, a religious congregation, recently took a stance in support of marriage equality for gay couples.
In 2004, most Oshkosh-area lawmakers supported the amendment. Senator Carol Roessler and Reps. Carol Owens and John Townsend voted for it, while Rep. Greg Underheim was one of only two Republicans in the Legislature to oppose the amendment.
Action Wisconsin is based in Madison and will soon hire a campaign manager and additional staff to build the statewide campaign, including an organizer to be based in northeastern Wisconsin.
Opposition to the amendment is growing in many communities, but there is particular momentum among people of faith. Recently, a number of regional mainline Protestant denominations voted to publicly oppose it, including three Lutheran synods and the statewide United Methodist conference.
Action Wisconsin: http://www.actionwisconsin.org
Following is a response to the post as displayed on an earlier version of Eye on Oshkosh
Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, August 08 2005 @ 09:17 AM MDT
Married couples have rights immediately upon marriage. Unmarried hetero couples have rights after a certain length of time cohabitating. No one asks if they are truely committed to each other. No one asks if they intend to be together through thick and thin. No one condems them or questions their devotion to each other. No one doubts their feelings or questions intimacies shared behind closed doors, both physical and emotional. We look upon a happy couple with a smile. We support them through their trials. We offer our sympathies when one is sick or has died. We believe that they have every right to create a life together if they choose to. They have every right to take care of each other and their families without question and without condemnation. The most beautiful thing in this world is a loving family. The capacity and bounty of love is boundless, endless, genderless; as is God's love for ALL creation.
Good Luck, Aaron.
For Immediate Release: July 27, 2005
Madison -- The campaign against a state constitutional ban on civil unions and marriage for gay couples gained steam today with the announcement that Oshkosh resident Aaron Sherer has joined the board of Action Wisconsin. Action Wisconsin is the statewide advocate for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people and is leading the campaign against the amendment.
Sherer moved to Wisconsin from Massachusetts with his partner Paul Smith in 2002. They live in Oshkosh, where Sherer is the director of the Paine Art Center and Gardens, and Smith teaches special education at West High School. Sherer says, “When we moved here, the rights of gay citizens were essentially identical in both states. Now, Massachusetts offers full marriage equality for gay couples, while Wisconsin is moving towards banning all legal protections for our family.”
"Having Aaron join the board will be a major boost to our effort to increase support for equality in the Oshkosh area," said Action Wisconsin executive director Christopher Ott.
The proposed constitutional amendment is likely to be on the November 2006 state-wide ballot. Lawmakers passed it once in March 2004, but the Legislature must approve it a second time before it goes before voters in a statewide election.
The amendment would not only permanently ban marriage for gay couples but would also foreclose the possibility of civil unions in Wisconsin, which could offer many of the rights of marriage. States that have already passed similar amendments are seeing them used to overturn domestic partner health insurance policies and domestic violence safeguards for unmarried heterosexuals.
Sherer’s primary reason for serving on the board of Action Wisconsin is to help defeat the amendment in the Oshkosh area. “We like living here and would like to stay. We think we’re making a contribution to our community. But this amendment goes too far. Paul and I are each other’s family, and this amendment would hurt our ability to take care of one another.”
Sherer also serves on the boards of the Oshkosh United Way and the Fox Valley Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Appleton. The Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, a religious congregation, recently took a stance in support of marriage equality for gay couples.
In 2004, most Oshkosh-area lawmakers supported the amendment. Senator Carol Roessler and Reps. Carol Owens and John Townsend voted for it, while Rep. Greg Underheim was one of only two Republicans in the Legislature to oppose the amendment.
Action Wisconsin is based in Madison and will soon hire a campaign manager and additional staff to build the statewide campaign, including an organizer to be based in northeastern Wisconsin.
Opposition to the amendment is growing in many communities, but there is particular momentum among people of faith. Recently, a number of regional mainline Protestant denominations voted to publicly oppose it, including three Lutheran synods and the statewide United Methodist conference.
Action Wisconsin: http://www.actionwisconsin.org
Following is a response to the post as displayed on an earlier version of Eye on Oshkosh
Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, August 08 2005 @ 09:17 AM MDT
Married couples have rights immediately upon marriage. Unmarried hetero couples have rights after a certain length of time cohabitating. No one asks if they are truely committed to each other. No one asks if they intend to be together through thick and thin. No one condems them or questions their devotion to each other. No one doubts their feelings or questions intimacies shared behind closed doors, both physical and emotional. We look upon a happy couple with a smile. We support them through their trials. We offer our sympathies when one is sick or has died. We believe that they have every right to create a life together if they choose to. They have every right to take care of each other and their families without question and without condemnation. The most beautiful thing in this world is a loving family. The capacity and bounty of love is boundless, endless, genderless; as is God's love for ALL creation.
Good Luck, Aaron.
posted by Cheryl Hentz at 4:18 PM
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