On May 8, 2012, the citizens of North Carolina will vote on an amendment to the state constitution titled the Defense of Marriage Act, providing that “marriage between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be recognized in the state.†The board of the Community Church of Chapel Hill, Unitarian Universalist, goes on record in the strongest possible opposition to this amendment. Amending the defining document of the state is a serious matter. What is proposed is denial of a right of citizenship – and a human right – to thousands of our citizens. Implications of such laws have been well documented. They can include denial of such rights as that to be with one’s life partner at a time of serious illness, as well as a great many other restrictions. In 1964, with the Civil Rights Act, our nation’s law rose above a history of discrimination on the basis of race. We must not now enshrine discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in our state constitution.
We stand with other churches committed to human rights, and with all those concerned with justice. We urge all who share such concerns to vote against this amendment.
Board of Directors
The Community Church of Chapel Hill, Unitarian Universalist