Michael Bumgarner
says he's never campaigned for a political cause
before, but his strong opposition to same-sex marriage has
prompted him to join thousands of volunteers going
door-to-door in support of a ballot initiative that
would ban gay nuptuals in California.
"I've never
stumped before, but I want to be a part of this,"
Bumgarner said. The retired insurance executive and devout
Mormon said his late mother would "turn over in her
grave" if she knew that gays and lesbians could marry.
With less than 11
weeks until Election Day, supporters of Proposition 8
are ramping up their field organization and refining their
message as they seek to persuade California voters to
shut the door on same-sex marriage. It's the first
time voters will be asked to weigh in on the issue in
either California or Massachusetts -- the states where gays
have won the right to wed.
An estimated
15,000 backers of the measure, most of them members of
Mormon, Catholic, and evangelical Christian churches,
knocked on doors and distributed campaign literature
to registered voters throughout the state this weekend
and last, according to Jennifer Kerns, spokeswoman for
the Yes on 8 campaign.
The initiative is
a constitutional amendment, similar to ones already
enacted in 26 other states, that would overturn the
California supreme court decision that legalized
same-sex marriage. It needs a simple majority of votes
to pass.
Ron Prentice,
director of the coalition of religious and social
conservative groups that qualified the amendment for the
November ballot, said the group has ordered 1 million
yard signs and 1 million bumper stickers.
"Unless the
people are angry, nothing will happen," Prentice said.
"We are going to change the constitution and say on November
4, 'Judges, you can't touch this.'"
For now the
campaign's goal is to identify supporters and voters who are
unaware or haven't made up their minds about the measure,
said Al Almendariz, a retired air traffic controller
and a Mormon.
Almendariz led a
team of five people canvassing a suburban neighborhood
southeast of Sacramento on Saturday, and their script was
concise. The volunteers told people who answered their
doors they were with the Proposition 8 campaign, an
effort that would define marriage as being between a
man and a woman. They didn't mention same-sex marriage
unless a resident brought it up.
"We're just
polling -- yes or no, not trying to find converts or
change people's minds," said Christina Hirst, 28, a
photographer with three young children. Hirst and her
husband, Justin, 33, a high school Spanish teacher,
said they joined the door-knocking Saturday because they
don't want their children hearing about gay relationships at
school.
The literature
that volunteers distributed was intended to reinforce the
campaign's message that the amendment is "pro-marriage and
children" instead of antigay.
"California
should do more to encourage families to stay
together," reads the pamphlets illustrated with close-ups of
heterosexual couples posed cheek-to-cheek.
Frank Schubert,
who is comanaging the Yes on 8 campaign, said the
outreach effort is designed to counter the principal message
of gay rights advocates, who are portraying the
upcoming vote as a matter of fairness and equality.
"They want people
to feel like you are a bad person if you support what
has been the definition of marriage since the dawn of time,"
Schubert said. By having face-to-face conversations about
why the amendment is necessary, organizers hope to
reach potential supporters who may worry that voting
for the measure would get them labeled as "bigots or
homophobes," he said.
Bumgarner
distributed handouts listing "Six Consequences if
Proposition 8 Fails" that volunteers were encouraged to use
as talking points. They included warnings that
ministers who preach against same-sex marriage could
be sued for hate speech, churches would be sued for
refusing to host wedding ceremonies for gays, and that
"children in schools will be taught that same-sex
marriage is OK."
The amendment's
opponents dispute those claims, saying that the supreme
court specifically exempted churches from having to
participate in same-sex weddings and that nothing in
state law requires teachers to discuss marriage --
straight or gay -- with students.
Recent polls
suggest the election could be close. A Field Poll taken last
month found that 51% of likely voters said they would vote
against Proposition 8, while 42% said they would vote
for it. (AP)
