Minnesota foes of gay marriage raise $830K

The lead group pushing to ban same-sex marriage in Minnesota raised $830,000 in 2011 in the latest signal that a fierce, high-dollar contest is taking shape over the proposed constitutional amendment. Minnesota for Marriage, a coalition of groups formed in an effort to get the marriage amendment approved this November, said that in addition to its fundraising, it also recruited more than 10,000 v...

Minneapolis Star-Tribune • Feb 1, 2012

Foes of marriage amendment raise $1.2 million

A group leading the effort to defeat a proposed constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage has raised $1.2 million, mostly in the closing months of 2011, according a new campaign finance report. Minnesotans United for All Families raised the funds last year from more than 5,100 people, with some larger donations coming from wealthy and prominent Minnesotans, including James Pohlad, owner ...

Minneapolis Star-Tribune • Jan 30, 2012

St. Paul City Council opposes marriage amendment

The St. Paul City Council overwhelmingly approved a resolution Wednesday opposing an amendment on the Nov. 6 ballot that would ban same-sex marriage. Six of the seven City Council members sponsored the resolution so it passed easily. Only Council Member Don Bostrom didn't sign on to the proposal....

Minneapolis Star-Tribune • Jan 26, 2012

MN: Appeals court: Gay marriage case must return to district court

In a win for gay rights advocates, a state appeals court on Monday overturned the dismissal of a lawsuit that sought to remove legal barriers to gay marriage in Minnesota. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of three same-sex couples, will now return to Hennepin County District Court, where it will likely proceed to trial as debate heats up over a statewide vote next fall to ban gay marriage in Minnesot...

Minneapolis Star-Tribune • Jan 23, 2012

Gay marriage debate: Brace for a 15-month brawl

A full 15 months before Minnesota voters decide whether to cement a ban against same-sex marriage into the state Constitution, the campaign over the amendment is already heating from a simmer to a full boil. Groups on both sides of the proposed amendment have ramped up their fundraising machinery -- amid suggestions the campaign could top $10 million -- and have boosted their efforts to enlist ar...

Minneapolis Star-Tribune • Aug 19, 2011

Minnesota: Next week: Activity surrounding gay marriage amendment

Three weeks after the Legislature voted to put the gay marriage amendment on the ballot in 2012, things are beginning to pick up steam. Most notably, the state's campaign finance board plans next Tuesday to revisit a 14-year-old advisory opinion which said corporations -- both businesses and non-profits -- do not have disclose their own donors when giving to ballot question committees. Activists...

Minneapolis Star-Tribune • Jun 13, 2011

Minnesota: 40 Methodist clergy members support gay marriage

Dozens of clergy members of the United Methodist Church in Minnesota have pledged to marry any couple who come to them, including same-sex couples. During the Methodists' annual conference in St. Cloud this week, about 40 clergy members signed a statement saying they would "offer the grace of the Church's blessing to any prepared couple desiring Christian marriage."...

Minneapolis Star-Tribune • Jun 3, 2011

Minnesota Poll: Support falls for ban on gay marriage

A majority of Minnesotans oppose amending the state Constitution to ban same-sex marriage, according to a new Star Tribune Minnesota Poll. Fifty-five percent of respondents said they oppose adding such an amendment while 39 percent favor a constitutional ban -- views that appear to be a sharp reversal of poll results seven years ago....

Minneapolis Star-Tribune • May 14, 2011

Don't put bigotry up for a vote

In the less enlightened days of America's past, it was illegal in some places for blacks to marry whites, for women to vote and for people of color to occupy the same public spaces as whites. The laws were racist, sexist and discriminatory -- and the nation came to understand the human toll. Unfortunately, we're still struggling to get it right when it comes to same-sex marriage. A proposal sail...

Minneapolis Star-Tribune • May 7, 2011

With GOP in control of Legislature, gay marriage ban approved by Minn. Senate committee

A state Senate committee passed a bill Friday setting a statewide vote next year on banning gay marriage in the Minnesota Constitution, a goal that eluded conservative activists for years but got sudden new life this week with Republicans now in control of the Legislature. The Senate Judiciary Committee approved the bill 8-4, with all Republicans in favor and all Democrats opposed. Passage by the...

Minneapolis Star-Tribune • Apr 30, 2011

Madeline Koch: Wanted: GOP for the next generation

First: We want equal marriage. Though we may not all be willing to march in the Pride parades or even send fiery letters to our congressmen about it, most of us believe that gay couples deserve the right to be legally wed. I can guarantee you this: The issue of equal marriage is not going to go away, and unless you start shifting within the Republican Party, you will not gain our support....

Minneapolis Star-Tribune • Aug 1, 2009

Gay marriage in Iowa is stirring Minnesota

Advocates are hoping the momentum from Iowa will spill over into a number of marriage debates on the East Coast. In the weeks following the Iowa ruling, New York Gov. David Paterson introduced a bill to legalize same-sex marriage. In Vermont, the Legislature overruled Gov. Jim Douglas' veto of a bill that recognizes same-sex marriage. And the Washington, D.C., City Council unanimously voted to rec...

Minneapolis Star-Tribune • Apr 29, 2009

Same-sex marriage back at the Legislature

A bill that would define marriage as a civil contract between "two persons," rather than a man and a woman, was introduced in the state Senate, sponsored by five DFL members. It has been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee, but no hearings have been scheduled....

Minneapolis Star-Tribune • Mar 6, 2009

Big push for same-sex marriage coming in '09

OutFront Minnesota, the state's largest group pressing gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender equality, says same-sex marriage will become its top priority next year....

Minneapolis Star-Tribune • Dec 19, 2008

Minneapolis rally protests gay marriage bans

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Minneapolis Star-Tribune • Nov 15, 2008