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Date Published: February 11, 2004
Coates defends gay marriage stance
Braden Bunch / The Item
Rep. Marty Coates, R-Florence, discusses his proposal to not recognize gay marriages from out of state Tuesday at the Statehouse in Columbia.
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By BRADEN BUNCH
Item Staff Writer
bradenb@theitem.com
COLUMBIA – Flanked by more than two dozen state House members supporting his measure, state Rep. Marty Coates, Florence, defended his proposal for South Carolina to refuse recognition of same-sex marriages, calling the measure pro-marriage, rather than anti-gay.
Last week, Coates submitted a bill to the House of Representatives that would extend the current state law that prevents same-sex marriages in the Palmetto State by prohibiting gay and lesbian couples married in other states from receiving any type of state-controlled benefits, like spousal insurance, if they were to relocate to South Carolina.
The bill, officially sent to a subcommittee of the House Judiciary Committee for discussion on Tuesday, is in reaction to a Massachusetts Supreme Court ruling from last week that cleared the way for that state to begin allowing same-sex marriages, and is similar to laws passed by the Ohio Legislature.
Joined by House Speaker David Wilkins, R-Greenville, Majority Leader Rick Quinn, R-Columbia, and several others, Coates said the bill protects “families and children of the next generation.”
When asked, Coates said the bill would affect only a small minority of the state’s population, but that, “Sometimes a small minority can create an erosion of the core values of our society.”
Coates also said he recognized that, if approved, there is a possibility of a Constitutional challenge against the bill, and that eventually he expects the federal government will have to weigh in on the matter.
Since he originally proposed the bill, Coates has garnered bipartisan support, including all of the House members from the Sumter County legislative delegation.
Rep. David Weeks, D-Sumter, said he supports the bill because it represents a protection of the institution of marriage.
“I believe the spirit of the bill represents the attitude of the people I represent in my district,” Weeks said.
Noting it could be amended, Weeks said he believes some form of the bill will pass the state House, but did not want to predict what would happen to it in the Senate.
The bill is also similar to one submitted to the House last week by Rep. Gloria Haskins, R-Greenville, and Coates said he expects the two bills will be merged in committee.
The bill, Haskins said, “serves legal notice to everyone, everywhere” that South Carolina will not recognize gay or lesbian marriages.
“There can be no ambiguity. We are focused on protecting the sanctity of marriage,” Haskins said, adding that the bill creates a firewall between South Carolina and any other state that allows gay marriages.
Bert Easter, president of the S.C. Gay & Lesbian Pride Movement, said after the press conference that the proposal is “a bill handed down from the religious right.”
“They’re grandstanding to create a wedge issue to be re-elected in this state,” Easter said at the Statehouse.
His organization is holding a town hall meeting today at the University of South Carolina to protest the proposal.
According to statistics provided by the organization, as of the 2000 census there were more than 7,600 same-sex couples living in South Carolina, including more than 270 couples in the tri-county area alone. Around 165 couples lived in Sumter County as of 2000.
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March 2, 2004
