DOMA Under Deliberate Attack in the Buckeye State

by Chad Groening
February 2, 2004

(AgapePress) - An Ohio-based pro-family activist says an Ohio city has handed homosexuals a major victory by giving so-called "domestic partners" the chance to register their relationships.

As Governor Bob Taft appears poised to sign Ohio's Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), homosexuals in Cleveland Heights have already taken steps to circumvent the law. Activists were able to convince voters in that community to approve a domestic partner registry.

According to David Miller, vice president of Citizens for Community Values, the domestic partner registry -- while conferring no particular legal or economic benefits -- will provide homosexual couples with a governmental "stamp of approval" for their relationships. "I think that's what is so significant about this and why it is being hailed as a victory," he says.

Miller says that while domestic partnership registries are not binding in courts, they do allow participants to "prove" to an employer or an insurance company that they are partners in a committed relationship by virtue of a registry certificate. And he notes that the registry is open to anyone in the world, so couples can come from anywhere and be certified in the Ohio community as domestic partners.

"Homosexuals have always sought society's approval, and clearly we've seen society become more and more desensitized and more and more accepting, a little bit at a time. And so it was a major win for them to get a domestic partner registry in the city of Cleveland Heights," Miller says.

Miller is concerned about the increasing extent to which homosexual activists are successful in gaining society's acceptance of homosexual behavior. USA Today reported that only a single protester stood outside city hall denouncing the Cleveland Heights domestic partner registry for promoting immorality.

Another concern is that the homosexual lobby is pressuring Governor Taft to veto the Ohio DOMA. The legislation has been hailed by pro-family activists because it goes farther in the defense of marriage than many other states' DOMAs, not only protecting the definition of traditional marriage, but also banning the recognition of Vermont-style civil unions. The Ohio DOMA also prohibits extending domestic partner benefits to state employees.

Miller and Citizens for Community Values are asking concerned citizens to contact the governor and encourage him to hold true to his commitment to marriage in Ohio by signing the DOMA into law.