For those of us concerned with marriage equality, particularly in the state of Rhode Island, yesterday was a momentous occasion.
In my capacity as minister of the First Unitarian Church of Providence, and a member of the steering committee of the Religious Coalition for Marriage Equality, Rhode Island, I had the privilege of attending a press conference called by Marriage Equality Rhode Island. Together with representatives of the media we met at the Rhode Island State House where a spokesperson for Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research presented the results of their most recent survey of the attitudes of registered voters in the state about marriage equality.
The findings were startling, at least for me. The survey found fifty-nine percent of the state’s voters favor marriage equality. This is considerably beyond the statistical margin of error. For some time younger voters have favored marriage equality, but now fifty-six percent of women over fifty, fifty-eight percent of unenrolled (independent) voters, and sixty-four percent of parents are seen to support this shift in law.
For a state with an enormous majority of Roman Catholics what was even more surprising, again, at least for me, is that fifty-seven percent of those Rhode Islanders who identify as Catholic support marriage equality. And when “told that marriage equality would not infringe on a church’s right to marry whom they choose, support (increased) to sixty-six percent among Catholics.”
Greenberg Quinlan Rosner is a nonpartisan research agency. They polled five hundred and two likely voters between July 7th & 12th of this year. “The data were weighted by gender, age, and region to ensure an accurate reflection of the population.” Their representative stated that while statisticians always want larger numbers, this sample was well within acceptable norms, particularly for a state this size. In response to a question from the floor he also acknowledged that as this was a land based phone survey there was a very slight skew in a more conservative direction, so one could in fact infer a slightly larger number of people in favor of marriage equality in Rhode Island. The survey carries a 4.4 margin of error.
“This poll makes clear that we are ready to enact a marriage equality law in Rhode Island now,” said Kathy Kushnir, executive director of Marriage Equality Rhode Island (MERI). “Rhode Islanders are ready to allow loving, committed same-sex couples to gain the dignity, respect, legal rights and protection that marriage brings. That is great news.”
At this time Rhode Island and Maine are the only two states in New England that do not recognize same sex marriage. The upcoming legislative session at the beginning of 2011 may well bring Rhode Island into line with the overwhelming majority of its sister states…
Feels to me like it is time to remind my legislators that this is an important civil rights issue.
And how it is well past time to act.
Perhaps you may want to make a call or send a note, as well…
Standing on the side of love, we shall overcome.
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