Reading further on the ACLU lawsuit against the act that bars adoption and foster parenting by unmarried couples, I find a clear imperative — it’s about people, not the law, though the constitutional argument is compelling.

The ACLU portraits of plaintiffs speak eloquently about the unintended consequences of the state’s latest exercise in gay bashing. And still more eloquently they testify that those ultimately damaged are children. In retrospect, the 57-43 passage of the law was a surprisingly small margin in a state where 70-plus is usually a given when the word homosexual is invoked. I think ACLU director Rita Sklar is right when she said voters simply were not fully educated. Exposure to the moving cases of the real people who’ve signed this lawsuit should be a good education. I hope the word gets around. Politically, it’s an uphill climb, I know. But I don’t think it’s out of the question to talk about legislation to right this wrong, even if a two-thirds vote is required. Let the men and the women of the legislature face these worthy plaintiffs and tell them with their red buttons to go to hell.

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