On Thursday, April 8, 2004 the University of Southern Maine will host a teach-in about the campaign for same-sex marriage, sponsored by the Center for Sexualities and Gender Diversity, Intercultural Development and Women’s Studies program. The keynote address by Mary Bonauto, Civil Rights Project director of GLAD (Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders) will take place from 12:30 to 2:00 P.M. in the Luther-Bonney Auditorium on the USM Portland campus. All other events will also be held on the Portland campus in USM’s Woodbury Campus Center.
“This event will begin with a panel in which lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and straight people will discuss the meaning of marriage,” said Michelle Brodsky from the Center for Sexualities and Gender Diversity. “This is just like the teach-ins during the civil rights movement and Vietnam war. As a university, it is our responsibility to provide information about the contemporary issues, and same sex marriage is one of the most controversial topics today.”
The highlight of the teach-in will be the keynote address by Bonauto, who has been at the forefront of the legal struggles for the same-sex marriage. Because of her work in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, the Supreme Judicial Court decision that found prohibitions on same-sex marriages unconstitutional in Massachusetts, Bonauto is the only attorney even to be named “Lawyer of the Year” twice in Lawyers Weekly.
Other panels and round-tables will address the historical background, legal issues and religious perspectives surrounding same-sex marriage. There will also be an informal discussion by and for youth. The whole day will be devoted to sharing opinions about marriages, the impacts of the legal situation, how it affects the individuals, and different religious perspectives will be represented.
“This is history in making,” said Brodsky. “It basically comes down to an issue of equal rights and whether discrimination will continue or not.”
Nino Kemoklidze can be contacted at [email protected]