Maine News Roundup: Yes on 1 Ad Pulled from YouTube; Interfaith Rally Held for Marriage Equality; Major Articles

Ad Pulled from YouTube

One of the anti-marriage equality Yes on 1 ads was pulled from YouTube "due to a copyright claim by National Public Radio, Inc." The ad contained a portion of a 2004 NPR interview with a sex education teacher from Massachusetts talking about gay and lesbian relationships. (See UTF's post on the ad itself.)

If you dare, you can still view the ad on the Yes on 1 site.

You can look at this one of either two ways. First, it could be good that less people will be seeing the ad. Or it could be bad because now the opposition can claim that this is a stunt to keep their message from being heard.

Portland Press Herald article, "NPR wants same-sex marriage ad pulled."

Interfaith Rally for Marriage Equality

From an October 18 report on WABI news in Maine (video report at link):

Today a statewide rally was held, called the In-terfaith March. It brought folks together from all denominations in support of gay marriage. Reverand Mark Worth came all the way from Castine to participate. "Well we have more than 200 religious leaders, clergy, rabbis, pastors, across the state who have signed statements saying that they support "no on #1" that we want to preserve the right of same sex couples to marry and that it's a good thing," he says. Rabbi Darah Lerner of Congregation Beth El in Bangor agrees. "I think it really points to the importance of this not just as a civil rights issue but as a spiritual issue," she says, "an issue of holiness and an issue of committment [sic] and an issue of values that religious denominations share like stability of families and the importance of raising kids in a loving committed relationship."

More at Bangor Daily News.

Boston Globe and Los Angeles Times Covers Maine Marriage Battle

The Boston Globe,"Same-Sex Marriage Fight Roils Maine:

For both sides, the Nov. 3 ballot initiative, Question One, is seen as a crucial juncture. Opponents want to show that momentum has shifted to their side, building on last year’s California vote to approve a ban on gay marriage. Supporters - with victories in Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Iowa - are eager to demonstrate that California was a temporary setback.

“The defeat in California, which was by no means predicted, was a terrible black eye’’ for supporters of same-sex marriage, said Christian Potholm, a government professor at Bowdoin College. “They very much want to make Maine a place where they turn that around.’’

But the outcome for either side is far from assured. Polls indicate that the contest is so far evenly divided in the independent-minded state, where conservative moral beliefs and entrenched live-and-let-live attitudes often go together.

The Los Angeles Times, "Maine's Gay Marriage Battle Has Echoes of Prop 8":

Welcome to Proposition 8 redux. With activists, money and advisors pouring in from across the country, the Nov. 3 referendum battle here is the low-budget, but still potent, sequel of the culture wars that roiled California last year.

Maine voters will decide whether to repeal a law that redefines marriage as the "legally recognized union of two people" regardless of gender. The law is on hold pending the referendum. Most polls suggest the electorate is evenly divided on the issue.

Supporters of same-sex marriage hope to end more than 30 consecutive losses at ballot boxes across the nation and signal a shift in public opinion. Opponents say victory here will spur their efforts to overturn similar laws or court rulings in other states.

With only 1.3 million people, Maine has the same population as San Diego. Moreover, the state's logging and lobster towns, taciturn Down East manners and live-and-let-live politics bear little similarity to the daily tumult and ethnic mix in California.

But the battle still echoes Proposition 8 in key ways.

Get involved at NO on 1/Protect Maine Equality!