As we’ve seen in the federal challenge to Prop. 8, our opponents have deliberately misled Californians on the distinction between civil and religious marriage, claiming that that clergy who refuse to perform marriages for same-sex couples would be punished and places of worship would lose their tax-exempt status. Thousands of EQCA volunteers who go door to door talking to people about marriage have reported that many Californians do not know that there is a difference between civil and religious marriage.
To alleviate confusion and to ensure our Constitution’s promise of religious freedom, Senator Mark Leno (D – San Francisco) introduced a bill today, sponsored by Equality California and co-sponsored by the California Council of Churches IMPACT, that protects clergy from being forced to perform any civil marriage that is contrary to the tenets of his or her faith and protects faith institutions’ tax-exempt status.
Regardless of party or ideology, every California legislator should support religious freedom. Email your representative and ask them to become a co-author of the Civil Marriage Religious Freedom Act.
When this bill is enacted, it will provide incontrovertible evidence that civil marriage for same-sex couples will not impact clergy or the freedom of religion.Email your representatives right now and ask them to become a co-author. If you’re registered with EQCA’s Action Center, you can reply to this email and a message will be sent automatically, or can log on to add a personal message.
Take action now and ask your representative to support religious freedom in marriage!
As you know, i am a strong advocate of equal rights for everyone, as i am sure you are. Please take the time to show your support! Thank you.
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