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E-Newsletter: 5/20/2004; PATRIOT Act,
Equal Rights
Dear Supporters,
Three issues this week.
1). Bill of Rights Defense Campaign
Rally
On Friday, May 21st, the Suffolk Bill
of Rights Defense Campaign is sponsoring
a rally against the PATRIOT Act culture
of indefinite detentions, denial of due
process and access to counsel, unwarranted
searches, restraint on free association,
and discrimination based on ethnicity
and religion. As the Campaign makes an
effort to pass a Suffolk resolution, we
have started with the Town of Huntington.
The Town Board has received a copy of
the resolution, and we have been meeting
with Board members to obtain their support.
The rally is part of this effort, and
it will occur at 7:00pm on the corner
of Route 110 and Main Street in Huntington.
Bring banners, music, friends and your
voices!
In addition, if you have not yet sent
a letter to the Town Board or County Executive
Steve Levy, please do so -- your letters
create important support.
Steve Levy: http://www.suffolknyclu.org/billofrights/levy.cfm
Huntington Town Board: http://www.suffolknyclu.org/billofrights/townboard.cfm
(As of the start of May, eighteen new
communities have passed a Bill of Rights
resolution, including Lewis and Clark
County, Montana and Bangor, Maine!)
2). Equal Rights for All
As certain groups find themselves the
target of discrimination from the PATRIOT
Act, so too do others find themselves
the target of discrimination at Town Hall.
For although every group of Americans
who has been treated unfairly has faced
unique challenges, history shows that
opponents of freedom frequently try to
enshrine discrimination in the law, insisting
that the group they want to fence out
is less worthy because it is morally unfit.
This was the justification for laws that
kept women out of the voting booth and
out of the workplace, it was the justification
for jailing dissidents, for racial segregation,
and it is the justification to prohibit
marriage for same-sex couples. Same-sex
couples, no matter their commitment, are
unable to marry and have secure access
to its provisions, including hospital
visitation rights, inheritance rights,
pension benefits, and health insurance
coverage.
The effort to create marriage equality
is a state-by-state, town-by-town and
county-by-county effort. There is an effort
in our home area that we can support.
Huntington is considering a Domestic Partner
Registry that would provide an opportunity
for unmarried couples to formally and
legally document a relationship of mutual
support and commitment. It would not create
marriage, but it would enable same-sex
couples to document their relationship,
helping them navigate the difficult terrain
of managing health insurers, employers
and hospitals without a marriage certificate.
Last night the Town Board held a hearing
about creating the Registry, and it has
the support of four of the five Board
members. Only one Board Member, Mark Capodanno,
has resisted. It is important to have
a unanimous vote in Huntington to create
pressure for a Suffolk County registry,
which has failed in the past by just one
vote. Although this is a political issue
on the large scale, at its base, it is
about families in our community who need
our help. If you are a resident of Huntington,
you can send a letter to Mark Capodanno
through our website at:
http://www.suffolknyclu.org/action/registry.cfm
You can also call Councilman Capodanno's
office at (please be polite but firm):
(631) 351-3171
If you are not a resident of Huntington,
please stay tuned. We will be starting
a campaign for a Suffolk registry in the
very near future.
Finally, this Sunday in New York City,
a coalition of groups will be holding
a March for Marriage Equality. The March
will start at 11:00am at Camden Plaza
East and Tillary Street, and will walk
across the Brooklyn Bridge to Battery
Park to demand the right to marriage for
same-sex couples. For more information
please see http://www.theweddingmarch.org.
3). Keep Us Informed
If you know of matters of civil liberties
being addressed at a town or county level
in Suffolk, please reply to this email
with your updates. Also, please forward
this message to family and friends in
Suffolk who are interested in civil liberties
so we can grow and strengthen our collective
voice. All personal information will never
be shared with other organizations.
Have a great weekend!
-----
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