Posted on Tue, Jun. 06, 2006

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State briefs | Opponents denounce marriage amendment

Opponents of a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriages in South Carolina called the proposed change a political stunt that would legalize discrimination.

South Carolina is among half a dozen states nationwide with marriage amendments on the ballot in November. Voters will decide whether to change the state constitution to say “a marriage between one man and one woman is the only lawful domestic union that shall be valid or recognized.”

“This amendment is a political ploy to rally the conservative groups and all the right-wing Christians to draw attention away from the real issues,” the Rev. Bennie Colclough said at a news conference Monday organized by the South Carolina Equality Coalition and the South Carolina Gay and Lesbian Pride Movement.

South Carolina has a marriage law, but proponents say a constitutional change would ensure that courts won’t overturn it and the Palmetto State can refuse to recognize same-sex marriages performed elsewhere.

• USC public relations students win U.S. title

University of South Carolina School of Journalism students won their second national title in three weeks in the Public Relations Student Society of America’s Bateman Competition.

It is the fourth time in five years USC students have taken top honors in the competition.

The four-member team won first place in the national track. Last month, USC’s four-member team, Can Do Carolina, won first place in the international track. In both competitions, Habitat for Humanity was the client.

The group worked with the Habitat for Humanity store near the USC campus, targeting college students and encouraging them to shop at the store to raise money for the charity.

Team member Jennifer Davidson, a senior from Columbia, said the group raised awareness of the store by 83 percent, increased the number of volunteers to 53 and boosted sales by 170 percent, from $10,000 to $27,000, during the monthlong campaign.

Other members of the group are Kat Salters, a senior from Darien, Conn.; Jean Triskett, a senior from Chesnee; and Alisha Cooper, a senior from Greer.

BARNWELL

• Celebration to honor antebellum writer

The Barnwell County Museum and Historical Board will host a celebration to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of writer William Gilmore Simms.

Simms was born in 1806 in Charleston. He was a novelist, poet, editor, historian and letter writer and has been called the most prolific Southern writer of the antebellum period.

Literary scholars and historians will gather in Barnwell on Thursday for the three-day celebration, which includes speakers and tours of sites associated with Simms’ life and writings.

At 9:45 a.m. Saturday, a bust of Simms will be unveiled in Collins Park in Barnwell.

Registration is required for all events except for the dedication of the bust. For more information, call the Barnwell County Museum at (803) 259-1916.

Contributing: Staff writer Jim Hammond and The Associated Press