In a newly released ad, supporters of
gay marriage in Maine have responded to allegations by opponents that
gay marriage will harm children, calling the claims “not true.”
Opponents of gay marriage in the Pine
State have mounted a “people's veto” to repeal a gay marriage law
approved by lawmakers in the spring. The National Organization for
Marriage (NOM) and its partner, the Catholic Diocese of Portland,
formed Stand for Marriage Maine to put the issue up for a vote in the
state.
NOM played a pivotal role in backing a
successful ban on gay marriage in California last November. The
group's first ad in Maine recycled arguments used during the
California debate. The ad tells viewers that gay marriage will
inevitably harm children.
In that ad, Charla Bansley, identified
only as a teacher from Ellsworth, says Question 1 has “everything
to do with schools.”
Robb and Robin Wirthlin, a
Massachusetts couple who also appeared in a California ad against gay
marriage, say: “After Massachusetts legalized gay marriage, our
son came home and told us that the school taught him that boys can
marry other boys.”
In a tight close up, Mrs. Wirthlin
adds, “He's in the second grade.”
“It's already happened in
Massachusetts,” Bansley says, then adds, “Vote yes on Question 1
to prevent homosexual marriage from being taught in Maine schools.”
“Not true,” says the new Protect
Maine Equality 30-second spot titled Proud.
“In Maine, we're proud of every
family and every child, regardless of who their parents are. That's
the Maine way,” a male announcer says.
“But outsiders are trying to harm our
kids and make them feel ashamed by making false claims about what's
taught in Maine classrooms that are baseless, not true.”
“It won't work,” the announcer
adds.
Bansley, the teacher in the anti-gay
ad, also runs the Maine affiliate of Concerned Women for America
(CWA), a group opposed to gay rights. CWA is the leading defender of
“don't ask, don't tell,” the law that forbids gay and lesbian
military service members from serving openly.
NOM is best known for producing the
widely parodied gay marriage ad released in the spring titled
Gathering Storm.