Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Who of those running to represent Richfield supports the proposed amendment? Who opposes it? Find out below.
Those vying for spots in the Minnesota House and Senate as Richfield representatives were asked for their views on the proposed marriage amendment during a candidate forum Sept. 29. And while all agreed the government should not be involved in legislating on moral or social issues such as marriage, views differed. And, well, some didn’t exactly answer the question. Melissa Halvorson-Wiklund (D) Wiklund said she felt it was inappropriate for state legislators to put the amendment on the ballot. Vern Wilcox (R) Wilcox said he didn’t see marriage or gay marriage as a government issue, and therefore did not agree with legislators’ decision to move forward with it as an amendment. However, as a Catholic, he said he is in support of the …
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Minnesotans United for All Families is airing its second ad opposing the amendment Thursday.
Richfield's John Gamoke will appear in the latest television ad from opponents of the anti-gay marriage amendment. In the ad, Gamoke says his marriage of 22 years is the most important thing in his life, and asks, “Who am I to deny that to anybody?," according to an Associated Press article run on Minnesota's CBSlocal.com and a handful of other news outlets. A spokeswoman for Minnesotans United for All Families reportedly said Gamoke is an actor, howerver, he's speaking about his real marriage. The new ad starts Thursday on Twin Cities and Duluth television stations, in tandem with another ad featuring a Savage, MN married couple. If passed, the amendment would further strengthen an already existing ban on gay marriage in Minnesota by …
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Residents Kathy Luebbe and Rev. Dr. Robyn Provis say being gay isn’t the most interesting thing about them.
For nearly eight years, Kathy Luebbe and Rev. Dr. Robyn Provis have been making a life together—and spoiling their miniature, black and white dog, Oreo. The couple moved to Richfield from different states—Robyn from Missouri and Kathy from Ohio—about six months after meeting online. Within six months of arriving, they found a home, secured jobs and tied the knot in Toronto, Canada. Robyn, a pastor at Salem Evangelical Lutheran Church in North Minneapolis, said Kathy, a music teacher at Richfield Dual Language School, was the first to make a move. “I didn’t want to date within my church,” Robyn said. “So I simply thought I’d connect with some people socially. But, Kathy liked me and she wrote me.” “I was also widening my social circle,” …
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Patch asks readers to weigh in.
When Tom Emmer ran for governor in 2010, the public soon found out Target Corporation had donated $150,000 to MN Forward, an organization that was running ads backing the candidate, who was adamantly opposed to same-sex marriage. Following the discovery, a movement to boycott Target sprang up from the streets to social media platforms. Target was adamant that it had donated cash to both sides of the aisle. Richfield-based Best Buy also donated to the organization that year, however, Target caught the brunt of criticism as the corporation had been seen as an ally for the LGBT community for years. Now with Minnesota voters being asked to vote on whether to amend the state constitution to say marriage is between one man and one woman, …
Monday, June 18, 2012
The Change.org campaign has grown to more than 20,000 petitioners.
More than 20,000 people have now joined a campaign on Change.org asking Richfield-based Best Buy to oppose the anti-gay marriage amendment on the ballot in Minnesota this November. The number has risen from 15,000 just two weeks ago. The campaign was started by a recent University of Minnesota Law school graduate, Andrew Korando, following Target Corporation's public statement against the amendment. Last Thursday, General Mills also spoke out against the measure. “Best Buy is increasingly alienating itself from other Minnesota-based companies that recognize the importance of fairness and equality in recruiting top talent and building a strong state economy,” Korando said in a recent press release. “I applaud General Mills and Target for …
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Richfield Patch continues its series on local churches and their position on the proposed marriage amendment.
The Rev. Tom Eklo of Richfield’s St. Nicholas Episcopal Church, after voicing his opposition to the proposed constitutional amendment that define marriage as between one man and one woman in Minnesota, went even further recently, saying he’d like to get out of the marriage business altogether. “I don’t think clergy should be doing marriages," he said. "We’re basically puppets of the state in that regard." According to Eklo the state is responsible for marrying individuals—and because marriage is thus a civil, rather than religious contract—religious organizations, of any denomination, should not be tasked with performing marriages. “My ideal situation would be to get out of the way," he said. "Have clergy do blessings of unions between …
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St. Nicholas Episcopal Church
7227 Penn Ave S, Richfield, MN
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Wednesday, June 6, 2012
After Target's recent statement in opposition to the amendment, a recent University of Minnesota Law School grad started a Change.org campaign to get Best Buy to do the same.
More than 15,000 people have joined a campaign on Change.org asking that Best Buy speak out against the anti-gay marriage amendment that will be on the ballot this November. The amendment would change the Minnesota Constitution to state marriage is only between one man and one woman. According to a press release, Andrew Korando, a recent University of Minnesota Law School graduate, started the campaign following Target Corporation's recent statement in opposition to the amendment. “Opposing this amendment is not simply the right thing to do, but as a local institution, it is also in Best Buy’s best interest if it wants to recruit and retain the industry’s top talent,” Korando said in the release. “I moved to Minnesota from another state, …
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Richfield Patch continues its series on the anti-gay marriage amendment and how it is being addressed at local churches.
Prior to the November 2012 general election, when Minnesotans will have the opportunity to vote on a constitutional amendment defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman, three Catholic churches in Richfield recently affirmed that they will be following the lead of the Archdiocese of Minneapolis and St. Paul, urging members and others to vote yes on the anti-gay marriage amendment. While spokespeople for both St. Richard’s Catholic Church and Assumption Catholic Church referred inquiries about the issue directly to the office of the Archdiocese, Ann Garland, a business administrator at St. Peter's Catholic Church, said her church’s position was clear. “Our position is that marriage is between a man and a woman and that the …
Monday, April 9, 2012
President Obama's Minnesota campaign releases a statement on the proposed anti-gay marriage amendment.
With Minnesota voters charged with voting for or against a Constitutional amendment that would define marriage between one man and one woman, President Obama's Minnesota campaign released a statement opposing the measure Monday, according to an MPR News article. "While the President does not weigh in on every single ballot measure in every state, the record is clear that the President has long opposed divisive and discriminatory efforts to deny rights and benefits to same sex couples," Kristen Sosanie, spokeswoman for the Obama for America—Minnesota campaign, said in the statement. "That's what the Minnesota ballot initiative would do—it would single out and discriminate against committed gay and lesbian couples—and that's why the …
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Take our poll: Have your views on this issue evolved over the past year?
One year ago today, the Richfield City Council passed the Domestic Partnership Registry Ordinance. Since then, nine couples have put their names on the registry. The ordinance allowed long-term heterosexual and same-sex couples to register their relationships, giving those couples recognition in the city and supplying them with various benefits families often have. When the ordinance was up for review, Council Members Fred Wroge and Tom Fitzhenry would've prefered to see a resolution at the state level, but others believed a city ordinance would provide Richfield's legislative representatives more leverage when tackling the issue at the state level. Now, as Minnesotans debate whether to amend the state constitution to ban same-gender …
Meeche Miller
10:43 am on Sunday, August 5, 2012
This article did not isnpire me at all - it made me angry that this paper is jumping on the Obama loving bandwagon to kiss up to the lesbians and try to make them look normal. They are in a relationship that is not normal - Marriage is the union between a Man and a Woman. This arrogant couple want not only Minnesota but the world to recognize them as a legitimate couple - they will never be - … more ›