Box Turtle Bulletin
News and commentary about the anti-gay lobby“Now you must raise your children up in a world where that union of man and box turtle is on the same legal footing as man and wife…”
News and commentary about the anti-gay lobbyAugust 11th, 2009
The organization seeking to stop the implementation of Washington State’s legislative enhancement of domestic partnership is seeking to do so outside the glare of public scrutiny. They successfully delayed the release of the names of signatories to the petition until a hearing in September, but that isn’t enough.
Now they are seeking to keep its donors private. (Seattle PI)
Protect Marriage Washington last week asked the PDC to hold an emergency hearing because it said there had been violent threats against churches, property and supporters of the campaign. The group said such threats had been forwarded to the FBI.
I’ve not seen these, and they may be real. But in the past, such “threats” have generally turned out to not actually be violent threats at all once reviewed but rather a “threat” of a boycott or simply hate mail of the “I hope you die and rot in hell” variety.
And the request for anonymity does not sound promising at the moment.
Doug Ellis, assistant PDC director, said the agency would not hold an emergency hearing but rather listen to R-71 backers at its next regular meeting, which is Aug. 27. Ellis said transparency is expected in election financing.
“It’s a hurdle that they are going to have to jump to be able to say that the public doesn’t have a right to know who is financing their campaigns,” Ellis said Tuesday
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David C.
August 11th, 2009
I’m a little outraged that the state did not defend the practice of making the petition signers’ names public, caving by not even showing up to defend transparency of an important part of the petition process.
For PMW to now attempt to hide their campaign financing is beyond cowardice and a shameless attack on the transparency of the whole referendum process. It suggests that the backers of R-78 are poltroons of the worst kind, without the courage of their own convictions. When the state prevails—provided its officials do their jobs—and it is shown that the backers of R-78 misled voters; tried to hide from view by placing themselves above the laws designed to preserve the integrity of the process; and lied: the malice, contempt, and cowardice of the bigots will be made manifest before the entire Washington state electorate. That is what the craven Protect Marriage Washington goons really fear.
If PMW is that afraid of the repercussions of their actions, perhaps they should stay out of other people’s lives and not visit their hate on innocent people that were being represented and protected by their elected officials.
BJohnM
August 12th, 2009
There are two sides to “free speech.†You have a right to take to the public square and speak freely, but I have a right to go to the public square and witness/hear your expression. You are not entitled to go into the public square, but demand that all others be kept beyond ear-shot.
This is what I think is going on in the case of the R-71 supporters, and shame on this Judge for even issuing a temporary restraining order withholding the names of the petition signers. I believe the minute the R-71 supporters invoked a “free speech†claim of any kind, they immediately ended any expectation of privacy for the signers and financial supporters. In effect, what they have asked, and the court has granted in terms of the signers, is the ability to express themselves in the public sphere, but have every other citizen held out of ear-shot. They now seek the same for the financial supporters.
The Constitution guarantees us each a secret ballot, but we are not allowed to petition our government in secret. Despite Dick Cheney’s beliefs’ to the contrary, that is the very reason for open government statutes. The people’s business is supposed to be done before the people (all of them). Whether or not it might cause people harassment should be of absolutely no concern to the courts. The question is, if a person ventures into the public square to petition their government (or financially support that petition), are other citizens allowed to listen. The judge who granted relief to withhold the names of petition signers has already failed the test. I am entitled to know who is speaking, what they are saying, and who paid for the megaphone.
Alex
August 12th, 2009
R-71 supporters don’t seem to mind making the private relationships of their fellow citizens into a public issue, yet demand privacy for themselves to avoid facing the consequences of their intolerance. Pretty cowardly and pathetic.
Lurleen
August 12th, 2009
I think this is hollow grandstanding. They’ve yet to produce a related police report. Also, the other R-71 backer, Faith & Freedom, reported the names of their August donors, not just their initials like PMW did. If they thought the threat was real, why didn’t both orgs refuse to report donor names?
To preserve the new domestic partnership law, vote to APPROVE Ref. 71 in November. Sign up with Washington Families Standing Together and help get the word out. http://www.wafst.org.
ravenbiker
August 13th, 2009
Wha Wha Wha! These churches and bible thumpers can do nothing but cry about the “threats.” And how many of us GLTB people have been threatened and even killed? But, of course, keeping a closeted profile doesn;t work either.
“If you can’t stand the heat (of voicing your opinion), then get out of the kitchen (the public square).”
Yeah, I do hope they die and rot in hell
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