N.H. Marriage Repeal Held to 2012

By Advocate.com Editors

The New Hampshire house judiciary committee unanimously decided to hold two bills that would repeal a marriage equality law that was approved in 2009.

Lawmakers decided Thursday that such a vote would be held off until the 2012 election cycle, the Associated Press reports. The decision comes after house majority leader D.J. Bettencourt indicated in January that it would be better if the committee held the bill until next year, because marriage equality is a contentious issue that could take away time from working on fixes to the economy.

After being introduced to the committee, a hearing concerning the issue attracted 600 people testifying against repeal in February. According to recent polling, a majority of New Hampshire residents want to keep marriage equality on the books.

New Hampshire Freedom to Marry executive director Mo Baxley said locals are getting more used to the law, which makes them more sympathetic toward gay and lesbian couples and families.

"This is why legislation overturning marriage equality should not be 'retained' until next year but defeated and removed from consideration entirely," Baxley said in a statement Thursday. "It should be sent to the dustbin of history."

Lew Feldstein, cochair of Standing Up for New Hampshire Families, added that two thirds of independent voters and one third of Republican voters support keeping the law.

Gov. John Lynch, who signed the marriage bill into law, said he would veto a repeal if it reached his desk. Still, Republicans hold large enough majorities to override his veto.

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‘Freedom to Marry’ to launch national marriage equality public education campaign

Freedom to Marry, a national marriage equality advocacy organization, is set to launch the first-ever national public education campaign aimed at increasing nationwide support for marriage equality.

The groundbreaking campaign — “Why Marriage Matters” — includes ads nationwide featuring gay, lesbian and straight couples talking about why marriage matters to them.

The organization has pledged to raise and spend $10 million over the next three years on the “Why Marriage Matters” campaign, which will launch during Freedom to Marry Week on Valentine’s Day with an initial national cable buy on CNN.

“Across the country the thinking of many Americans, from the president to the people next door, continues to ­­­– as President Obama put it ­ — ‘evolve’ toward support for same-sex couples joining in the freedom to marry,” said Evan Wolfson, Founder and President of Freedom to Marry.

“By engaging friends, families, and neighbors in personal conversations about why marriage matters, each of us can help fair-minded people wrestling with a lack of information and uncertainty, and change hearts and minds,” he said.

Wolfson said his team "has crunched over a decade’s worth of polling data" and analyzed over 85 data-sets representing 6 years of research to develop messages that are proven to be effective in swaying public opinion around marriage.

In particular, the data showed that people who have had conversations with their gay and lesbian friends about why marriage matters to them are more likely to support the freedom to marry.

“As Americans see their gay and lesbian friends, families, and coworkers in loving and committed relationships, they realize there is no good reason to withhold the protections and support that only come with marriage," said Thalia Zepatos, Director of Public Engagement for Freedom to Marry.

The "Why Marriage Matters" campaign will include a variety of mixed media advertising, including TV, radio, and online ads.

Watch on of the videos here; there are more videos and stories at the "Why Marriage Matters" website.



Freedom to Marry was launched in 2003 by Wolfson, a civil rights attorney generally considered the architect of the national marriage equality movement.

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