Feature

By Joel Shoemaker

“12% = Victory”

That’s the phrase written on the dry-erase board behind the desk of Don’t Amend Alliance campaign manager Scott McCoy.
    The phrase refers to a poll conducted by Deseret News/KSL-TV poll published June 27, which attempts to gauge public support for a proposed Utah State Constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage and anything like it. It will be on the November 2 general election ballot, and some say the amendment threatens many aspects of life for gay and lesbian couples.
    According to the Deseret News, when 909 registered voters were asked, “Would you vote for or against a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage,” 55 percent said “Definitely” and seven percent more said, “Probably yes.”
    “If I know 62 percent are in favor,” said McCoy in a June 29 interview with QSaltLake, “I can move 12 percent through education.”
    For McCoy and the Don’t Amend Alliance, which is leading the fight against the amendment, education will be key. McCoy says that although he takes the 12 percent figure to heart, it’s the poll itself that reveals much of the task that lies ahead for the alliance.

    According to McCoy, the response to the poll’s follow-up question reveals that many are misinformed about the proposed amendment’s impact. When pro-amendment respondents were asked, “Would you still vote for the amendment if it not only banned same-sex marriage, but also civil unions and common law marriages?” five percent actually changed their mind against the amendment, and four percent said they didn’t know what way they would vote.
    McCoy says educating the public on the full impact of the amendment will “peel off the layers” of support. He says much of his objective is convincing people that the amendment is not a simple up-or-down vote on same-sex marriage, but one that is double-layered, with a dangerous second layer.
    The proposed amendment, passed by the state House and Senate in the final days of this year’s legislative session, does in fact have two components: The first defines marriage as a “legal union between a man and a woman.” The second part states that “no other domestic union, however denominated, may be recognized as a marriage or given the same or substantially equivalent legal effect.”
    McCoy says the second part is overly broad, threatening many aspects of life for all types of partnerships — gay or straight. Hospital visitations, tax benefits, inheritance decisions, child support and maintenance obligations, domestic partner benefits and more, all become murky legal waters for unmarried couples if the amendment were to pass, he says.
    “The optimist in me says the legislature was in such a rush to put this together that it came out so broad, but the realist in me says they knew what they were doing,” says McCoy.
    But even with the threat of the amendment passing, McCoy remains positive.
    “I think they handed us an opportunity,” says McCoy, “because when people hear about part two, they change their minds about the amendment.”
    To make sure people hear about part two, a fully equipped, fully staffed downtown headquarters comes in. Ironically located above a gown shop called “Latter-Day Bride” in an office building located at 175 W. 200 South, the 11-room headquarters is staffed with nine full-time paid employees and four interns. Rolls of blue and white “Don’t Amend” stickers pile on desks. Volunteers work steadily to individually stick address labels on piles of envelopes.
    Sub-leased from an engineering firm for $2,000 a month, it’s at this location the volunteer, field, political and fundraising operations for a campaign that stretches from St. George to Logan is coordinated. McCoy says such an expansive headquarters at this early phase in the campaign wouldn’t have been possible without a $250,000 donation from local philanthropist and WordPerfect co-founder Bruce Bastian.
    One massive task for the headquarters is recruiting volunteers.
    Teinamarrie Nelson, volunteer coordinator for the alliance, has a goal of getting 3,000 volunteers to work one million hours for the campaign. As of now, she says, between one and two hundred people have put in about two to three thousand hours. They do “phone-banking” every Tuesday, and door-to-door canvassing Thursday evenings and Saturday mornings.
    The door-to-door work, she says is the biggest challenge for the volunteers.
    “With all the missionaries we have,” Nelson says, “you would think the door-to-door stuff would be easy. But it’s not.”
    Still, Don’t Amend sees the face-to-face contact as the most influential work they do, helping to build a connection with the voter. In fact, a main thrust of Don’t Amend’s strategy is getting out in front of as many people as possible.
    In addition to going door-to-door, Don’t Amend hopes to be at every city festival in the state. Volunteers were scheduled for Tooele and Riverton over the weekend of July 4, and Cedar City on July 10, to name a few.
    Not always are they welcome.
    A recent e-mail sent from McCoy to Don’t Amend supporters asserted that the mayor of Herriman denied Don’t Amend a booth at Fort Herriman Days because they “didn’t want ‘our kind’ of booth there.” QSaltLake was unable to reach Herriman Mayor Lynn Crane for comment. But Fort Herriman Days Chair Jeff Crane said the decision was based on a three year-old rule that limited booths to non-political, non-partisan organizations. Crane said this was the first time they denied an organization based on the rule.
    The main goal in the outreach programs is to identify “no” voters, of which over 6,000 have been identified, according to McCoy. Once a person is identified as being against the amendment, Don’t Amend makes sure that individual is registered to vote, and actually gets to the voting booth on or before the election. Registering voters is another major project. On Pride Day, Nelson says volunteers registered 200 new voters, many who were motivated to register because of the amendment. McCoy estimates 400,000 registered “no” voters are needed to defeat the amendment.
    Aside from festivals, Don’t Amend will soon kick off their “Out Against Discrimination” campaign at local bars, clubs and other gathering places. Beginning with a July 30 kick-off party at the Circle Lounge, volunteers will begin the twice monthly event, being on hand to educate and inform people about the amendment.
    And when people aren’t being sought in public places, Don’t Amend goes private with house parties hosted at supporters’ homes or places of business. Don’t Amend has produced a seven-minute DVD that serves as the centerpiece for the party.
    Again stressing education, McCoy says the house parties are particularly effective because it allows Don’t Amend a chance to fully explain their opposition to the amendment. As of now, 52 house parties are scheduled from St. George to Logan with a goal of 300 parties by election day.
    The house parties also serve as a major instrument for fundraising. McCoy says each party has a fundraising goal of $750, some raising more, some less.
    Few at Don’t Amend shy away from saying the effort is going to need considerable cash.
    In charge of fundraising is Mike Thompson, Don’t Amend’s Director of Development, who moved from Denver specifically to work for Don’t Amend. Along with an aggressive mail campaign, he says one major source for large sums of contributions will most likely come from online donations, accepted through the organization’s website.
    Just in the first weeks of accepting online donations, Don’t Amend received an average gift of $100 per individual, topping $10,000, according to Thompson.
    “Donors are investors,” says Thompson. “When people understand it’s a winnable cause, people give.”
    As for political strategy, McCoy says that through polling early on, Don’t Amend has identified the key arguments that work best. He says Don’t Amend is steering clear of trying to convince people to be in favor of same-sex marriage — a battle that would be impossible to win in Utah.
    Instead, Don’t Amend will use a non-partisan approach that unites left-wing liberals with conservative groups that oppose constitutional changes.
    “We don’t care how we get your ‘no’ vote, just as long as you’re ‘no,’” says McCoy.
    He says he’s coordinating a meeting with the Libertarian Party, a group that opposes same-sex marriage but could find common ground with Don’t Amend in their opposition to changing the state’s constitution. He hopes to do the same with the Constitutional Party and the Personal Choice Party.
    McCoy says he’s also working to arrange a meeting with the LDS Church, hoping to convince them to not actively support the amendment.
    Further, McCoy says Don’t Amend will assert through the campaign that a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage isn’t necessary in Utah because of laws already on the books that make it impossible already.
    “If the amendment fails on November third, gay marriage will still be illegal, three laws will still be on the books preventing it, and we still won’t have basic rights,” he says. “But we will have the hope that some day in the future we will be able to achieve those basic rights.”
    McCoy also says that argument may draw in conservatives. “We aren’t in a situation that we need to pass an imperfect amendment,” McCoy says.
    As for the opposition to Don’t Amend, McCoy is anticipating the Eagle Forum of Utah leading the “yes” campaign. President Gayle Ruzicka did not return QSaltLake’s calls or e-mails for comment on this article. Rep. LaVar Christensen, R-Draper, the amendment’s sponsor, was said by his secretary to be out of the country and unavailable for comment as well.
    McCoy says his biggest fear in the coming fight is that supporters of the amendment will demagogue the issue, portray gays and lesbians as villains, and capitalize on people’s fears and stereotypes.
    Above all, McCoy stresses the need for gays and lesbians to get involved in the fight.
    “In Utah, victories for us are rare, and that lends to us an apathy that hurts us,” he said. “But this doesn’t have to be one of those times. More than ever before, this is the time to get involved.”

    The Don’t Amend Alliance web site is at
    www.DontAmendAlliance.com.