Student groups plan second Pro-Choice Day
Jesse Call
Issue date: 4/9/08 Section: News
Politics, privacy and same-sex marriage will all be celebrated on April 10 in the University Center at Northern Kentucky University. Common Ground, NKU's gay-straight alliance, and NKU Students for Choice, a pro-choice advocacy organization, will be hosting a series of events as part of their Second Annual Pro-Choice Day.
The goal is to have a same-sex marriage ceremony occur on campus, according to Jacob Barrett of the Kentucky Equality Federation, a state-wide advocacy group for the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community. The KEF is working with Common Ground to host the event. Presently, Barrett said they do not have a minister willing to officiate the ceremony due to schedule conflicts.
The same-sex marriage ceremony has been postponed twice, once due to weather, and again when the NKU employee and Universal Life Church minister was who was to officiate the wedding, Sam Lapin, backed out of the ceremony after concerns arose from University administrators and his supervisors. Those administrators and supervisors felt the marriage ceremony might elicit controversy and impact Senate Bill 112, which would restrict universities from extending benefits to domestic partners of gay employees. The KEF was not involved in those attempts.
Lapin has not been asked to officiate the ceremony this time around, however, he said he hopes the event is "a great success."
The event is being advertised as "an official Celebration of Marriage" through flyers posted around campus.
In a previous interview with the Kentucky Enquirer, Sara Sidebottom, vice president for legal affairs and general counsel, said "I didn't judge the ceremony, I judged the word 'official,'" referencing previous advertisements that prompted her office to raise concerns about the ceremony. Sidebottom was unavailable for comment prior to press time, and Jay Manire, associate legal counsel, refused to comment.
It is illegal for a person qualified to perform marraiges to legally marry same-sex couples. The use of the word "official" makes it seem like the marriage would be legally recognized. However, Kentucky does not recognize such marriages.
The goal is to have a same-sex marriage ceremony occur on campus, according to Jacob Barrett of the Kentucky Equality Federation, a state-wide advocacy group for the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community. The KEF is working with Common Ground to host the event. Presently, Barrett said they do not have a minister willing to officiate the ceremony due to schedule conflicts.
The same-sex marriage ceremony has been postponed twice, once due to weather, and again when the NKU employee and Universal Life Church minister was who was to officiate the wedding, Sam Lapin, backed out of the ceremony after concerns arose from University administrators and his supervisors. Those administrators and supervisors felt the marriage ceremony might elicit controversy and impact Senate Bill 112, which would restrict universities from extending benefits to domestic partners of gay employees. The KEF was not involved in those attempts.
Lapin has not been asked to officiate the ceremony this time around, however, he said he hopes the event is "a great success."
The event is being advertised as "an official Celebration of Marriage" through flyers posted around campus.
In a previous interview with the Kentucky Enquirer, Sara Sidebottom, vice president for legal affairs and general counsel, said "I didn't judge the ceremony, I judged the word 'official,'" referencing previous advertisements that prompted her office to raise concerns about the ceremony. Sidebottom was unavailable for comment prior to press time, and Jay Manire, associate legal counsel, refused to comment.
It is illegal for a person qualified to perform marraiges to legally marry same-sex couples. The use of the word "official" makes it seem like the marriage would be legally recognized. However, Kentucky does not recognize such marriages.
Viewing Comments 1 - 3 of 3
Charlotte
posted 4/09/08 @ 8:44 AM EST
Marriage is a basic civil right that should be attainable by all Americans if they choose. For the truth about gay marriage check out our trailer. Produced to educate & defuse the controversy it has a way of opening closed minds & provides some sanity on the issue: OUTTAKEonline. (Continued…)
Edwinna Meister
posted 4/10/08 @ 1:38 PM EST
I read with interest the article about a second Pro-Choice Day on April 10, 2008. In that article, Erin Sandy, vice-president for the organization, stated that she hopes pro-choicers choose not to protest the Right to Life display on that same day, and seems to insinuate that such a protest works against "educating people about their role in the politics sphere, and politics' role in their lives". (Continued…)
Alex Kindell
posted 4/13/08 @ 9:17 PM EST
Edwinna-
I am the president of Students for Choice, and I invited Katie Walker and Marissa Caldwell, both officers of Right to Life, to participate respectfully within the Personal Power & Politics Fair about two months ago, so they could feel their voice and opinion about the political sphere was being heard, and there wouldn't be the need for them to protest. (Continued…)
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