Republican Priorities Are Seriously Out of Whack
For folks whose life purpose is to make gay marriage illegal in North Carolina, you're too late -- it is already illegal under North Carolina criminal law.
So why are the Republicans spending $50,000 a day pushing an amendment to the state constitution to ban gay marriage? Why not make driving drunk, or perpetrating financial fraud, or cheating on your taxes unconstitutional?
Because what the Republicans really want is to distract people from the train wreck that is their economic agenda.
The reality is that this amendment will not put one person back to work, it will not help one small business keep its doors open and it will not assist one single citizen now trying to recover from the devastation inflicted by Hurricane Irene.
In fact, this amendment will stifle job creation and obstruct our economic recovery—don’t take it from me, take it from some of the top companies in America.
291 of the Fortune 500 companies prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation. This includes Bank of America, Lowe’s, Duke Energy, BB&T, and Reynolds American (the five largest North Carolina-based public companies).
More than 50 major private companies in North Carolina offer same sex domestic partner benefits, including Bank of America, the fifth-largest Fortune 500 Company in America, and Food Lion.
Also, more than 100 prominent members of the business community in North Carolina have already signed a petition opposing the proposed amendment to ban same-sex marriage in our state.
American businesses have become leaders in the recognition of same-sex couples and many companies have adopted inclusive workplace policies to attract and retain talented workers. An anti-gay referendum in North Carolina would be out of step with Fortune 500 companies and out of touch with members of the next generation of entrepreneurial, innovative professionals.
This distracting and discriminatory amendment harms our state’s economy by sending a message that our state doesn’t welcome the diverse workforce that modern employers need to compete in a global economy. This perception alone can harm business recruitment efforts.
In addition to the economic consequences that accompany this amendment, it is simply un-American to single out any group of law-abiding citizens to harass and torment. Every time we select a set of folks to exclude from America's dream of a better life, the results are detrimental to our nation.
These times are hard enough without making any group of folks miserable. Voters give politicians power to use to make our lives better, not to carry personal vendettas and grudges based on some twisted idea of who is better than who.
North Carolinians aren't as stupid as Thom Tillis, Pat McCrory, Phil Berger and their allies think we are -- we know a skunk by it's smell no matter what color they paint the stripe or what name they call it.
And this just smells bad. Real bad.
Sincerely,
David Parker
Chairman, North Carolina Democratic Party
