I certainty have not heard of him. Until today.
Rep. Steve Simon delivered an eloquent and inspired argument on why the House panel in Minnesota should vote against a proposal to amend the State constitution. The proposed amendment seeks to recognize only those marriages between a man and a woman.
Ask yourself, if it's true that sex orientation is innate, is God-given, then what does it mean to the moral force of your argument? To put it in the vernacular, what I would ask is, 'How many more people does God have to create before we ask ourselves whether or not God actually wants them around? How many gay people does God have to create before we ask ourselves whether the living of their lives the way they wish as long as they don't harm others is Godly, holy, happy, glorious thing?' I've answered that for myself. I don't think everyone's answered that for themselves necessarily in this room.
Equally brilliant and enlightened was the testimony delivered before the Minnesota Senate Judiciary Committee by Madeline Koch, a 24-year old Minnesota resident who is a "self-identifying Republican and straight."
Instead, I'm driven by something else: an ideology — one encouraged by my peers — that tells me this is not the direction our state or our nation should be headed. In fact, among members of my generation, there is no doubt that equal rights for all Minnesotans is absolutely necessary for the good of our state. In other words, it should not be up for debate or used to achieve political gain.
Thank you, Rep. Steve Simon and Madeline Koch!
You can read the full text of Madeline's testimony here.
