Today was the day of the legislative hearing on the Maine Marriage Equality Law. It was the day when Maine citizens could explain to their legislators why they either do or don't support the proposed law, so people on both sides of the issue were planning to attend. Brenda took the day off work and we brought the family down to Augusta for the hearing. Grandma L. also came with us to show her support for marriage equality. We were instructed to wear red, so we could be identified as supporters.
We were a little nervous to bring our children to the event, and debated it a lot beforehand, since we knew emotions would run high on both sides. Above all, we didn't want to compromise their safety in case anyone got out of hand. In the end we decided to bring them because our desire to have a legal marriage is mostly because of the effect it will have on their lives.We were very happy to see many of our friends at the hearing, and especially happy to see that they had brought their kids as well.
The hearing was at the Civic Center, and the mood seemed pretty respectful. There were no big protests or shouting, just lots of people who felt strongly for one side or the other. There were also lots of TV cameras rolling.
The hearing was at the Civic Center, and the mood seemed pretty respectful. There were no big protests or shouting, just lots of people who felt strongly for one side or the other. There were also lots of TV cameras rolling.There were comment cards to fill out, so we all recorded our comments on the proposed law (even Kate!).
When we got inside, we were very happily surprised to see an ocean of red filling the seats. Just based on that, our side seemed to outnumber the opposition by about 10:1!
The hearing was supposed to start at 9:00 but it got going late because of the big crowd. The girls were getting very restless.
It was neat to see all the legislators on the committee and hear them introduce themselves. Besides voting, we are not particularly politically active, so it was interesting to see how things are done.
There were big lines of people waiting to testify at the open microphones. We wanted to hear some of the testimony, but the girls had had enough of the sitting.
We moved to the back of the arena (where lots of other little kids were playing too) and listened from there for awhile.
Finally the girls' time was up (they are just 2 and 3 after all), so we got our traditional Civic Center snack (orange drink and popcorn) and hit the road.
Polls show that Mainers are split about 50/50 on this issue, and the legislators have said that they will listen to their constituents before they vote, so we have no idea if this law will pass. All we can do is hope for the best, and think about where we would take our honeymoon!
When we got inside, we were very happily surprised to see an ocean of red filling the seats. Just based on that, our side seemed to outnumber the opposition by about 10:1!
The hearing was supposed to start at 9:00 but it got going late because of the big crowd. The girls were getting very restless.
It was neat to see all the legislators on the committee and hear them introduce themselves. Besides voting, we are not particularly politically active, so it was interesting to see how things are done.
There were big lines of people waiting to testify at the open microphones. We wanted to hear some of the testimony, but the girls had had enough of the sitting.
We moved to the back of the arena (where lots of other little kids were playing too) and listened from there for awhile.
Finally the girls' time was up (they are just 2 and 3 after all), so we got our traditional Civic Center snack (orange drink and popcorn) and hit the road.
Polls show that Mainers are split about 50/50 on this issue, and the legislators have said that they will listen to their constituents before they vote, so we have no idea if this law will pass. All we can do is hope for the best, and think about where we would take our honeymoon!
Good luck on the vote!
ReplyDeleteOh, I hope this happens for you guys, and also us here in Washington. Although, you being in New England (or close to...I'm not sure about the boundaries, sorry) means your chances are pretty high. You've already got CT, MA and VT. Great photos, and I'm glad you got to bring the girls, and that they were safe.
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