Washington D.C., Nov 19, 2009 / 04:23 am
The Board of Elections and Ethics in Washington D.C. ruled Tuesday that allowing a same-sex 'marriage' ban on the ballot would violate the city's Human Rights Act of 1977. On Wednesday, the organization, Stand4MarriageDC filed a lawsuit against the board saying it is denying D.C. citizens the right to vote on the definition of marriage.
The Marriage Initiative 2009 is currently seeking to put a measure on the ballot in which voters can decide if “only marriage between a man and woman" should be "valid or recognized" in the District of Columbia. The measure is being championed by an organization called Stand4MarriageDC, headed by Bishop Harry Jackson, Senior Pastor of Hope Christian Church in Beltsville, Md.
Board of Elections Chairman Errol R. Arthur said in a statement on Tuesday that "laws of the District of Columbia preclude us from allowing this initiative to move forward" and that the initiative "would authorize discrimination prohibited under the [District's] Human Rights Act."
On November 18, the Alliance Defense Fund, a legal alliance which seeks to defend religious liberty, filed suit against the District of Columbia Board of Elections and Ethics on behalf of Stand4MarriageDC, saying that the board precluded the right of citizens in the district to vote for or against the definition of marriage.