NOM BLOG

Monthly Archives: August 2013

Marriage Emergency — Lawlessness in New Mexico

National Organization for Marriage

Dear Marriage Supporter,

Same-sex 'marriage' activists in New Mexico are not content to wait for the courts. Now they have found a county clerk willing to defy the Governor and Attorney General by issuing illegal 'marriage' licenses to same-sex couples.

It was reported yesterday that Dona Ana County Clerk, Lynn Ellins will start issuing same-sex 'marriage' licenses, against the express directive of the Attorney General. In June, Attorney General King issued a position paper stating same sex marriages are illegal in New Mexico and asked clerks to not begin issuing such 'licenses.' Nevertheless, the Attorney General refuses to put a stop to the issuance of these illegal documents, and that is why the Governor must act right away.

The battle for marriage as God designed has come to The Land of Enchantment; and it's your turn to stand in the breach. Every person who believes marriage to be the union of one man and one woman needs to contact Governor Martinez, urging her and her administration to give their full support to the defense of marriage.

Governor Martinez has been a strong supporter of traditional marriage, now we need her to put the weight of her office behind this vital institution's defense. Please contact Governor Martinez and urge her to intervene to stop the lawlessness in Dona Ana County. Like her colleague Governor Corbett of Pennsylvania, Governor Martinez can and should step in to uphold the rule of law in New Mexico.

Governor Martinez needs to do two things:

  1. Stop the lawless behavior in Dona Ana County; and

  2. Defend the marriage laws of her state in light of Attorney General King's refusal to do so.

This latest action goes beyond the pending lawsuits in New Mexico and moves into the realm of lawlessness and anarchy. County Clerks are not free to make up law on their own; it is there job to uphold the law and serve the people who elected them. But rather than wait for the legal process to conclude Mr. Ellins has gone rogue and chosen to defy the Governor and the Attorney General.

You can make a difference. In Pennsylvania over 700 people contacted Governor Corbett urging him to intervene, and he did.

Please take the time today to contact Governor Martinez and urge her to stand for marriage in the New Mexico courts.

Please, after you have taken action today, use the buttons below to forward and share this email with your family and friends so they can join you in standing for marriage in The Land of Enchantment.

Share This   Facebook This   Tweet This   Email This   Share on LinkedIn

For our families and the children to come,

Brian S. Brown

"Serial, Frivolous Case Filer" Targets NOM

What's the best way to weaken and silence those you disagree with? Intimidation and threats, of course. At least that's what some same-sex marriage activists believe. "Serial, frivolous case filer" Fred Karger is well aware of the important work that NOM has done, and continues to do, to protect marriage across the nation. He also knows there are millions of Americans who support our mission. Now he's making his agenda clear:

A homosexual activist is attempting to weaken the National Organization for Marriage and eat away at its donor list.

Fred-Karger“This same gentleman, an openly gay activist who fancies himself president of the United States one day, has filed similar complaints in Maine and California,” says [NOM regional director Chris Plante]. “And at no time has NOM been found guilty of any wrongdoing.”

“It's an effort to silence people who would stand for marriage in the public square,” says Plante, “who would criticize and critique our politicians and judges who redefine marriage against the will of the people.

The complaint stems from NOM's successful work to oust three activist Iowa Supreme Court justices who legalized homosexual marriage from the bench.

“I spoke with the gentleman who filed the complaint and he was quite honest,” Plante tells OneNewsNow. “He said, My effort is to dry up your funding stream and silence your voice. And he knows that by forcing NOM to reveal donors, which we do not have to do under the law, will certainly scare people from donating.” -One News Now

"Albany, where even transparency is discussed in secret"

The New York Times reports on the New York State Ethics Commission's questionable handling of requests for exemption from a state law, now two years old, that forces non-profits that engage in lobbying to turn over names of donors.

The recent dust-up comes after the commission voted to provide an exemption to Naral Pro-Choice New York. The list of critics that decision has garnered includes the New York ACLU:

"People say nasty things about us or call us up all the time, and we can take that," said Arthur Eisenberg, the group’s legal director. "It’s the individual donors who shouldn’t need to take that, and the price of their association with us, and their participation in the First Amendment activity of lobbying, should not be at the cost of their feeling secure and free from threats and retaliation."

Read more here.

 

Iowa Ethics and Campaign Finance Board Confirms No Facts Point to a Violation of Law

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 22, 2013
Contact: Elizabeth Ray or Jen Campbell (703-683-5004)


National Organization for Marriage

Washington, D.C. — The following should be attributed to Brian Brown, president of the National Organization for Marriage (NOM).

"The National Organization for Marriage made known to the Board its serious concerns about the possible prejudice against NOM by the Executive Director and Legal Counsel. The Board made a decision which dismissed NOM's concerns, but at the same time, the Board reaffirmed to NOM that it has not made a determination in any manner whatsoever that NOM has violated Iowa law, contrary to previous press reports. The Board has confirmed that it has no facts to support such a finding and that it is incumbent upon the Board to now gather the facts that will inform the Board whether a violation has occurred. NOM will continue to fully cooperate with the Board to furnish the evidence which will clearly demonstrate that no violation of the law occurred. NOM takes very seriously its legal compliance obligations and NOM is confident that once the Board reviews the facts and the evidence, this frivolous complaint will be dismissed."

###

To schedule an interview with Brian Brown, President of the National Organization for Marriage, please contact Elizabeth Ray (x130), [email protected], or Jen Campbell (x145), [email protected], at 703-683-5004.

Paid for by The National Organization for Marriage, Brian Brown, president. 2029 K Street NW, Suite 300 Washington, DC 20006, not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. New § 68A.405(1)(f) & (h).

How Language Affects Poll Results

When it comes to marriage polls, wording matters. This is something that same-sex marriage advocates are well-aware of, and we've seen them use it time and time again -- on polls and ballots alike -- in attempts to skew results in their favor.

Take a look at how Americans responded to two different questions on redefining marriage.

Would you approve or disapprove of changing the definition of the word marriage to also include same-sex couples?

  • Thumbs Up & Down39% Approve
  • 56% Disapprove
  • 5% Don’t Know

Do you favor or oppose legalizing same-sex marriage?

  • 46% Favor
  • 47% Opposed
  • 7% Don’t Know

The first question, which makes clear that marriage would be redefined entirely to include same-sex couples, garnered just 39% support. 56% were opposed to the redefinition. But now take a look at the language of the second, shorter question. When asked if they were for or against legalizing same-sex marriage, the results were drastically different.

Read more at Reason.com.

Why Didn't You Hear About This?

National Organization for Marriage

Dear Marriage Supporter,

On Monday I wrote to you about all the good things happening in defense of marriage and asked you to make a donation in support of NOM's work to bolster these efforts around the country.

Here's another good thing you probably haven't heard about: two major polls demonstrate that the majority of Americans believe marriage SHOULD NOT BE redefined.

First, a Rice University poll has surfaced showing that a majority of Americans — 53% — STILL believe marriage should only be between a man and a woman! This comparative study demonstrates that the idea that droves of Americans are changing their minds in favor of redefining marriage is a myth.

And today news of a recent Fox News poll has come to light that is even better. Fox asked the question, Would you approve or disapprove of changing the definition of the word marriage to also include same-sex couples?

56% said they would disapprove, while only 39% would approve!

You are not alone. We are winning this battle in the hearts and minds of every day Americans like you.

But the results of these surveys are being largely ignored in the media because they don't fit into the drum beat that says same-sex 'marriage' is "inevitable."

It is this lie of "inevitability" that we need your financial help to overcome. You may remember NOM's five-point plan I outlined several weeks ago. Point #5 is winning the battle in the court of public opinion — to overcome the false perception of "inevitability." These polls prove we are winning this battle.

Supporter, that's why we need your support. The only way we are going to be able to overcome the extremely well-funded group of extremists and a complicit media pushing this radical agenda is if we have sufficient resources to get our message out.

Won't you please make an immediate, generous donation to NOM to support our work today?

We must rally the religious, grassroots base of America to stand up for marriage. We must get on the airwaves and make sure people understand the nature and purpose of marriage and the consequences of redefining it. We must continue win in the court of public opinion.

So, please, consider making a generous donation to NOM so that we can continue building on all the positives in the fight to defend marriage.

Remember, when you make your gift, if you check the box on the donate page indicating that you want your donation to be an automatic, monthly, recurring gift, we will send you a free copy of NOM co-founder Robbie George's book, What is Marriage?: Man and Woman: A Defense — the best resource out there for anyone interested in defending marriage.

God bless you for all you have done in defense of marriage!

Faithfully,

Brian S. Brown

NOM's John Eastman Debates Marriage on PBS News Hour

States have been feeling the ripple effects over these past few months following the Supreme Court's DOMA ruling. NOM Chairman John Eastman was featured on PBS News Hour today to talk about how the DOMA decision is affecting state laws, particularly those states that already have marriage protection amendments in their constitutions.

New Zealand Legislators Committed "Arrogant Act of Cultural Vandalism"

New Zealand held its first same-sex ceremonies yesterday, which you've probably heard something about in the news over the past 24 hours. The media has been at it again, celebrating NZ same-sex weddings with as much hype as possible, all the while ignoring the fact that legislators redefined marriage back in April despite strong opposition and very little debate at the time.

You won't hear much about it in the mainstream media, but conservative groups, religious leaders, and Kiwis across the nation are speaking out this week, saying that the new law "defies the national mood and common sense". We agree.

Wellington, New Zealand“Despite their grandiose view, the politicians never had the authority to redefine marriage,” said Bob McCoskrie, the national director of Family First NZ. “They committed an arrogant act of cultural vandalism with no clear public mandate."

Many people have commented on the bias in reporting on the day’s events. The mainstream media featured laudatory coverage of the weddings themselves, giving little attention to opponents' views.

Australian couple Trent Kandler and Paul McCarthy were flown from Australia to Wellington by Tourism New Zealand, where a “wedding” was held at the national museum, Te Papa.

NewspaperAir NZ provided an in-flight “wedding” ceremony for a lesbian couple, Lynley Bendall and Ally Wanikau, where Jesse Tyler Fergusson from the TV series Modern Family was present. The package included a honeymoon at a Palms Spring Resort in the U.S.

Lance Huxford is calling for people to complain to the media, saying he is “shocked at the unbalanced coverage of the same sex marriage law coming into effect on both TV 1 and TV 3.”

“We must continue to speak up for marriage as uniting a man and a woman with each other and any children born from that union” Dame Colleen Bayer, national director of Family Life International NZ, said. “For the sake of our children, we cannot stand by and let marriage be mocked.” -LifeSiteNews

Legal Action Launched to Force Church Same-Sex Wedding

A same-sex couple in the UK made headlines earlier this month after vowing to sue the Church of England to force the Church into hosting their same-sex wedding. As of today, legal proceedings have officially begun.  This case is the ultimate proof that same-sex 'marriage' is truly about the desires of adults.  Mr. Drewitt-Barlow's cry, "I am still not getting what I want" is his motivation for suing Christians in order to force them to recognize his 'marriage.'

UK ChurchMillionaire gay couple, the Drewitt-Barlows, have confirmed they have “launched” a legal challenge to the right of churches to opt out of gay weddings.

[Barrie Drewitt-Barlow] said: “We’ve launched a challenge to the Government’s decision to allow some religious groups to opt out of marrying same-sex couples.

“We feel we have the right as parishioners in our village to utilise the church we attend to get married.”

Earlier this month, Mr Drewitt-Barlow said he and his civil partner, Tony, would go to court to force gay weddings on churches.

He added: “It upsets me because I want it so much – a big lavish ceremony, the whole works, I just don’t think it is going to happen straight away.

“As much as people are saying this is a good thing I am still not getting what I want.” -The Christian Institute

Defend Marriage Lobby Day in Illinois!

If you live in Illinois, mark your calendar now! The Illinois Family Institute will be hosting the second annual Defend Marriage Lobby Day & Prayer Watch on Wednesday, October 23rd.  This is an incredibly important opportunity to stand for marriage.  The Illinois legislature is coming back into session for 3 days and homosexual-'marriage' advocates have dedicated $3 million to winning over the courageous black legislators who stood for marriage earlier this year.  Let these men and women know that you stand with them.

IFI_Lobby-Day-Oct-23-2013_2upJoin IFI and Illinois families from around the state to take a stand to protect marriage, religious freedom, parental rights and the innocence of our children! Plan to bring your family and friends AND organize your church to support this second Defend Marriage Lobby Day.

It is critically important that we have a strong showing because homosexual activists continue to press for counterfeit "marriage" (SB 10), which will affect all of society, especially children and religious freedom.  The groups pushing to pass this bill are planning to be at the Capitol on October 22nd, the day before our event. According to a 6-12-13 Windy City Times article, they have dubbed it "10.000 Families March for Marriage Equality."

Wednesday, October 23rd
9:00 AM – 3:00 PM
Illinois State Capitol
401 South 2nd St, Springfield, IL 62701

Download the flyer here.

Congressman Camp is Coming to Town, Tell Him to Stop the IRS

Editor's Note: This email went out to Congressman Camp's district in Michigan, but the issues surrounding the IRS scandal are of national importance. Please look over the blog post below and then call Congressman Camp at 989-631-2552 to demand that he use his power as Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee to resolve this egregious violation of NOM's (and all Americans') rights. And if you have family or friends in Rep. Camp's district, please use the social sharing buttons in the post to share this information with them.

National Organization for Marriage

Share This Facebook This Tweet This Email This Share on LinkedIn

Dear Marriage Supporter,

You have a special opportunity to strike a blow for the rule-of-law and the defense of marriage this month. Your Congressman, Dave Camp, is the Chairman of the very important House Ways and Means Committee. This is the Congressional Committee that has been holding hearings on the IRS scandal in Washington, DC.

As you know, NOM has been the victim of a felony crime in that someone within the IRS leaked NOM's confidential tax return in 2012. This criminal provided our tax documents, with the names of several donors, to the Human Rights Campaign and the Huffington Post. It is a felony to have provided this information and to have revealed the confidential names of NOM's donors.

Since learning about this, NOM has filed numerous "Freedom of Information Requests" and demanded that the IRS take action against the perpetrator. To this point NOM has received no satisfactory answer from the IRS as to the status of the investigation or even if one is under way.

The scandal made national news when it was also revealed that the IRS inappropriately targeted conservative organizations for particular scrutiny in the applications for tax-exempt status. However, what happened to NOM goes beyond targeting to a felony crime.

Chairman Camp is holding Town Hall meetings in your district this month to hear from you, his constituents. This is an opportunity for you to go and ask your Congressman, the Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, what exactly is being done to get to the bottom of the IRS Scandal and restore the rule of law in Washington.

Friday, August 23, 9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.
James Wickson Library
359 South Franklin Street
Frankenmuth, MI 48734

Friday, August 23, 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Isabella County Building - Room 225
200 North Main Street, Mt. Pleasant, MI 48850

Thursday, August 29, 9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.
Owosso City Hall - Conference Room
301 West Main Street, Owosso, MI 48867

Thursday, August 29, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Clinton County Courthouse
100 Michigan 21
St. Johns, MI 48879

Friday, August 30, 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Gratiot County Courthouse - County Board of Commissioners Room
214 East Center Street, Ithaca, MI 48847

Friday, August 30, 1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Roscommon County Building - Commissioners Room
500 Lake Street, Roscommon, MI 48853

I urge you to make the time to attend one of the Town Hall meetings the Congressman has scheduled and ask him for an explanation and demand the Ways and Means Committee use its power of subpoena to resolve these issues.

Here are several talking points about the scandal; followed by action items NOM has demanded the Ways and Means Committee take to resolve this issue. We urge you also, as his constituent, to respectfully demand the Ways and Means Committee use all its powers to restore credibility in Washington.

  • In March, 2012, someone at the IRS leaked the National Organization for Marriage's confidential tax return — a felony — to the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), which posted the document on its website. HRC is NOM's principal opponent in the marriage battle and has waged a war of intimidation and harassment against NOM and those active in the effort to preserve marriage. In early 2012, HRC president, Joseph Solmonese, was appointed a national co-chair of the Obama reelection campaign. A few months later, the publication of NOM's tax return occurred.

  • NOM's published Form 990 Schedule B from 2008 contained the identity of dozens of major NOM donors. NOM knows the document was from internal IRS because under a mask that was applied to the document to hide the origin, which computer programs were able to remove, revealed the internal IRS stamp on the document, on every single page in the same location.

  • In early April 2012 after the publication of their tax returns, NOM asked both the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) for investigations. NOM knows TIGTA conducted an investigation, but they never identified the perpetrator of this crime. If charges are brought, federal law requires that the taxpayer be advised.

  • Beginning last August 2012, NOM began filing a series of FOIA and Privacy Act requests with TIGTA and the IRS to try to ascertain the status of the investigation, the identity of the perpetrator, and any information relating to where the decision was made to commit this felony against NOM for obvious political purposes. Those requests have been stonewalled, with the latest non-response response, dated May 3, 2013, claiming that the very same statute that was violated by disclosing our returns shields the identity of the perpetrator as the "subject" of an IRS investigation.

  • The IRS, the DOJ, and TIGTA have not brought charges against the individuals who committed these felonies in over a year, and they are using a convoluted interpretation of the statute prohibiting disclosure to shield the identity of those same individuals from NOM.

  • Insist that the House Ways and Means Committee subpoena Joseph Solmonese, and other HRC staff, to determine exactly by what means HRC obtained NOM's confidential donor information

  • Pursue full disclosure from former Acting IRS Commission Steven Miller. Mr. Miller was unable to provide satisfactory answers to the Committee on May 17th. The Committee should subpoena Mr. Miller and require him to give a full account under oath.

  • Some Congressmen are arguing that the IRS scandal should result in broad based tax reform.

  • Tax reform, though a laudable future goal does not help with the immediate problem before us of the criminal theft of confidential donor information.

  • Left unsolved, the theft of donor data is now perpetuating donor intimidation, further eroding public confidence in the ability to Congress to the people's business and emboldening political opponents to engage in more criminal acts and intimidation.

  • Tax reform will not hold those responsible accountable for their actions. We are looking to Congressman Camp, as Chairman of Ways and Means, to aggressively investigate the theft and publication of donor data by the staff of the IRS and the Human Rights Campaign.

Thank you for taking the time to make your voice heard Chairman Camp, and to move this investigation forward. All Americans should be able to engage in the public discourse about marriage without fear of reprisal or harassment.

You can keep up to date on the latest regarding NOM and the IRS scandal here.

Share This Facebook This Tweet This Email This Share on LinkedIn

DOD Leave for Same-Sex Marriage Criticized

PressTV:

Conservatives have criticized Pentagon’s decision to grant full family benefits including marriage leaves of up to 10 days to military gay/lesbian couples who want to get married.

Marine WeddingCritics say the move by Pentagon is unusual as same-sex marriage is still barred in 37 states including the entire southern states, where most military installations are based.

Conservatives say that openly homosexual service members, who were barred from serving in the military until two years ago, are receiving special treatments that even heterosexual couples can not enjoy, according to Los Angeles Times.

Heterosexual couples are not granted marriage leaves, which Petere Sprigg, a senior fellow at Family Research Council calls “homosexual honeymoons.”

“It could well be argued that the new policy actively discriminates against opposite-sex couples, who receive no special leave for their weddings,” Sprigg wrote in a FRC news release on Thursday.

Reverse 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'?

Don't Ask, Don't Tell may just be alive and well in the military. Only now it applies to Christians.

The Right Scoop:

Senior Master Sergeant Phillip Monk, who’s been in the Air Force for 19 years, was relieved of his position and reassigned because he disagreed with his openly gay commanding officer about gay marriage. Monk’s commanding officer wanted to strictly punish a subordinate Airman for mentioning to his trainees that he disagreed with same-sex marriage. Monk apparently thought her punishment was to harsh and it came out that he also disagreed with same-sex marriage. He was later reassigned.

“I was relieved of my position because I don’t agree with my commander’s position on gay marriage,” said Monk.

 

FOX News Interviewer: How worried are you that Christians in the military are caught in a really tough spot now, in trying to balance tolerance and acceptance of their fellow men and women who are serving with them, but also to be able to express their own views based on their religious beliefs?

Kelly Shackelford [attorney representing Sergeant Monk]: This is really concerning. What happened here to Sergeant Monk is a violation of Air Force policy. It's a violation of DOD policy. It's a violation of the Constitution. And as you mentioned, this is a trend. For instance, if you were to go to libertyinstitute.org and look at Sergeant Monk's facts, you'd see a link to numerous other recent attacks on our soldiers and our airman, and that shouldn't be happening. That violates the law, and our soldiers deserve a lot better. They're giving service for us to protect these freedoms, so I think the least we can do now is stand with them when they come under attack.

Debating Marriage: What's a "Hater" To Do?

In the Public Discourse today, Narrator Principal Brian Brown writes on the need for marriage advocates to discuss marriage in a way that appeals not only to reason, but also to emotion, intuition, and imagination.

Brown outlines Nathan Hitchen's document You’ve Been Framed: A New Primer for the Marriage Debate to suggests several methods of unifying marriage advocates "so that we can pursue a future in which we are no longer viewed as haters and bad guys."

Hitchen argues that to change aspirations, marriage advocates must understand five basic things:

  • Emotion, which interacts with reason in people’s moral imaginations;
  • Narratives, which shape people’s biases about pretty much everything;
  • Stories, which make things relatable and personal in a way no courtroom argument does;
  • Metaphors, which allow the mind to easily process and retain complex ideas; and
  • Memes, which are easily replicable ideas that stick in people’s minds and slowly change perceptions.

Debating MarriageChanging aspirational narratives is also partly done through metaphors. Research has consistently shown that audiences are more likely to remember and comprehend complex arguments through images. Marriage advocates, Hitchen suggests, should communicate truths about marriage and the common good through metaphors such as “marriage is our country’s social infrastructure.” Marriage isn’t just a religious institution or a majority-rules game for the same reason highways and harbors aren’t—men and women are the harbors from which children set sail (which is partly why some people in France and Britain who want homosexuals to be happy don’t favor gay marriage).

And finally, narratives are changed through memes. Hitchen says marriage advocates should compress their arguments into easily replicable ideas that can stick in people’s minds and slowly challenge prevailing assumptions. “Marriage equality” is the meme that is currently dominating the debate. Even disagreeing with it implicitly accepts its premise.

To beat such a “sticky” meme, marriage advocates would have to popularize a stickier meme (preferably stealing back a term the other side likes to use). For example, the meme “true marriage is more diverse” appeals to the distinct, complementary differences between mothering and fathering (instead of the “mono-gendered” structure of two men or two women). Or the meme “changing marriage creates inequality” could be attached to stories of the unequal emotional experiences of children raised in single-sex environments. For memes to work, they have to be on the leading edge of every pro-marriage argument, all the time. -Public Discourse

Good Things in the Defense of Marriage

National Organization for Marriage

Dear Marriage Supporter,

Despite what the mainstream media would lead you to believe, the marriage debate in the United States is very much alive...good things are happening in the defense of marriage.

I'm writing today to ask you to please consider making a generous donation to NOM so that we can continue to build on these positive steps. And when you make your gift, please consider checking the box on the donate page indicating that you want your donation to be an automatic, monthly, recurring gift. We will send all new monthly donor sign ups a free copy of "What is Marriage?: Man and Woman: A Defense" for enrolling as a NOM "Sustaining Partner" of our work.

What things, you ask?

Positive steps like the African American pastors and legislators standing strong for marriage in Illinois and holding back the homosexual 'marriage' advocates who have pledged to spend $3 million to force their will on Illinois later this year.

Positive steps like the courageous Governors of Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Wisconsin who have taken a strong stand for marriage as the union of one man and one woman.

  • In Pennsylvania, Governor Corbett stepped in to defend his state's Defense of Marriage Act and his administration is suing to stop the lawless behavior of a rouge county official issuing same-sex marriage licenses in direct violation of the law.

  • In Wisconsin, Governor Walker has made it clear that his state will not be redefining marriage in the near future.

  • And in Indiana, Governor Mike Pence came out strongly in the wake of the US Supreme Court decisions this summer declaring his support for true marriage and committing his state to put a pro-marriage amendment on the ballot in November 2014.

Positive steps like the 1500 Iowans who attended The Family Leadership Summit that NOM co-sponsored earlier this month demanding that the GOP produce a candidate in the 2016 elections who will stand for marriage and life.

Top to bottom, positive steps are taking place across our country to protect marriage as God designed it.

The media doesn't want you to know about these positive developments so they don't report it, but the truth always finds a way to shine forth. The truth is that a strong majority of Americans believe that marriage is the union of one man and one woman.

We are privileged to be what the Washington Post called "the preeminent organization" standing for marriage as the union of one man and one woman, but we can only do it with your generous support.

And your support is needed as much now as ever. Even with all the positive steps we see across the nation, opponents of marriage and the right of children to be raised by a mom and a dad push their agenda stronger than ever.

In Illinois, gay-marriage activists have promised a $3 million campaign to win over those courageous black legislators that have stood in the gap.

The state ballot battles looming next year in Indiana, Ohio, Oregon, and other states will require every ounce of strength, perseverance, and financial commitment we all can give.

And the legal battles to stop the lawlessness that has broken out across our country in the name of homosexual-'marriage' demand time and financial commitment that we cannot meet without your gracious support.

Let me close with a brief but powerful example of the craziness that supporters of true marriage are up against.

You'll remember that last May in North Carolina, the people of that state approved a state constitutional amendment defining marriage as one man and one woman with over 61% of the vote. You'd think that would be the wonderful end of the story, but no. In blatant disregard for the will of the people of that great state, and the Constitution itself, homosexual-'marriage' advocates are now 'trolling' North Carolina for County and City officials who are willing to abandon their oaths-of-office and issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples in violation of the Constitution, betraying the voters who put them in office.

They are actually placing ads on YouTube.

Only with your support can NOM continue to help true marriage champions remain strong in the fight and keep taking positive steps in this battle. Remember, if you sign up to become a Sustaining Partner by checking the box to make your gift a monthly, recurring gift, we will send you a free copy of "What is Marriage?: Man and Woman: A Defense."

Thank you for your faithfulness and the positive steps you enable us to take in the defense of God's unique institution of marriage.

For our families and children,

Brian S. Brown