Georgia (V) Congressman Lynn A. Westmoreland

Today I continue with Congressman Lynn A. Westmoreland, Republican, representative of Georgia's 3rd Congressional District:

Dear Congressman Westmoreland,

I write in protest of your opposition to marriage equality. You made opposition to marriage equality a cornerstone of your election campaign in 2004, and once in Congress were co-sponsor of a constitutional amendment that would have denied the right of same-sex couples to marry throughout the United States. More generally, you have established a shockingly poor record on issues relating to the rights of LGBT citizens, earning ratings of 0% for both of the last two Congresses from the Human Rights Campaign.

Marriage equality is the civil rights struggle of our generation, and your opposition to it demonstrates your tone-deafness to the spirit of our times just as your description of President Obama as "uppity" did during the general election campaign last year. No one can fault your religious beliefs as to what constitutes a legitimate marriage, but you may be criticised for attempting to unfairly impose your beliefs at the expense of the rights of your fellow Americans. According to many Christian denominations my wife and I, who were married by a rabbi, are living in sinful adultery. Should the state then refuse us a marriage license? If your answer is no, then the logical case for your opposition to marriage equality becomes quite obscure. If being Jewish does not disqualify two people from the equal protection of the law, why should being of the same sex do so?

The logical imperative of marriage equality is pristinely clear, yet discrimination remains effective through most of the Union. For that reason I and others propose that the federal constitution should be amended to read: "The right to marry shall not be abridged or denied by the United States or any state on account of sex or sexual orientation." Only when the constitution is thus amended or intepreted will our laws and institutions be brought into alignment with the basic rights of all our citizens.

I have set out to write every member of Congress seeking sponsorship of this reform. Perhaps on reflection you will see the error of your current stance and join our righteous cause. In any case I thank you for your attention on this matter and hope this message finds you well.

Sincerely,

Andrew Meyer