Date: Sun, 20 Mar 1994 08:43:00 EDT From: Song Weaver Subject: Colorado For Family Values Report Another example of what the right wing is saying. ------------------------------------------------- CFV Report, Vol 14, March 1994 What's Governor Romer up to? by Will Perkins, Executive Board Chairman A number of recent events have occurred which should cause grave concern to all Ammendment 2 supporters -- or all Coloradans concerned about Justice, for that matter. First of all, after a prolonged delay -- caused by Judge Bayless' unwillingness to clarify major unexplained points in his ruling -- the state of Colorado has been forced to move ahead with an appeal *without any clarification whatsoever*. Judge Bayless' intransigence could cost Colorado taxpayers additional time, money, and confusion as the case winds through the appellate courts. We're left to question how a servant of the state could flatly ignore repeated requests -- from both sides of the case -- for a simple understanding of his own ruling. Secondly, our opponents, the plaintiffs in the Amendment 2 court trial, have quietly taken the unusual step of removing Attorney Ceneral Gale Norton 's name from the lawsuit's list of defendants. This ominous development received very little, if any, coverage in the Colorado media, despite its unusual effect of leaving Governor Romer as the sole defendant of Amendment 2 in the courts. Why does this development concern us? We can only speculate as to the plaintiffs' motives for removing Attorney General Norton from the lawsuit. But consider this scenario. Following another State Supreme Court ruling that Bayless "did the right thing," Romer -- now the only decision-maker left -- comes to the podium to say, "Having performed my responsibility as governor by seeing this issue through our state courts, and in view of the severe budget restraints facing my office, I cannot commit the resources necessary to risk an uncertain outcome in the federal courts -- therefore, I'm dropping the defense of Amendment 2." Or, "Since the Colorado Supreme Court has been so clear and so convincing in its conclusion that Amendment 2 is unconstitutional, I believe the issue is settled. Let's all forget Amendment 2 ever happened." With Attorney General Norton gone, the majority would have no one left to defend their vote. To properly weigh whether such a scenario is possible, it's important to note that the homosexual lobby will do almost anything to keep Amendment 2 out of the federal courts. It's also important to know more about Governor Romer's duplicity regarding Amendment 2 -- both before and after the election. lt's important to know that Governor Romer has not told the truth when telling the media that he has done nothing to oppose Amendment 2 since election night. On December 10, 1990, Governor Romer signed Executive Order D003590, which expanded minority non-discrimination rules in Colorado State employment to include "sexual orientation." Governor Romer' s order in turn prompted the scheduling of so-called "sensitivity training" in a number of state agencies, including the Colorado Mental Health lnstitute at Pueblo and the regional centers in Grand Junction, Wheat Ridge, the institute at Fort Logan, and the Mount View Youth Services Training Center. As witnesses have told us, the tone of these scheduled three-hour meetings rapidly changed from *information* to *indoctrination*. One report I have was from the hospital in Pueblo. At the conclusion of the session, all participants were told to gather in one room and were offered buttons saying, "It' s O.K. to be Gay." The leaders then instructed all who would wear the buttons to go to one side of the room. Those who felt otherwise, and would not wear the buttons for reasons of personal conviction, were told to go to the other side, turn around, and face the first group. The pressure on participants to betray their personal beliefs was intense. Only two people declined to wear the pins, though many later confided that they had only worn them to protect their jobs. This clear example of on-the-job-harassment, set in motion by Governor Romer's own actions, was one of our first looks at the unfair and intolerant nature of so-called "gay-rights activism," and became one of the main motivators for the creation of Amendment 2. Later, on election night 1992, Governor Romer marched through the streets of Denver carrying a "No on 2" sign with a mob of Amendment 2 opponents. Perhaps most troubling is a meeting which took place November 9 -- a full six days *after* the passage of Amendment 2. On that date the governor called a meeting in his office regarding Amendment 2, the details of which were reported to the Civil Rights Commission by Director Jack Lang y Marquez: "11/9: Attended meeting in governor's office regarding Amendment 2. Attendance was at the request of the governor and was also attended by Commissioner Foster. Outcome of the meeting was the formation of a task force of business and community leaders *to minimize the effects of the passage of Amendment 2 and develop a strategy for reversal of the amendment.* Governor Romer states his *official position would have to be* to uphold the will of the people and to see to the implementation of the law." (Emphasis added.) Jack Lang y Marquez, "Colorado Civil Rights Commission Director's Report," 18 December I992, pp. 4-5. So the majority of Coloradans face the uncomfortable position of having their will defended by a governor who served as honorary chairman of the organization opposing them (EPOC), and who actively opposed their vote both before and after that vote was cast. Recently, Governor Romer called to personally inform me that he had instructed Attorney General Norton to proceed with the case as if she were still named in the suit. He told me he had issued a statement to that effect. I have seen a great many people shift their thinking about Amendment 2 over the past several months. Many who had once been taken in by the misleading tactic of equating homosexual behavior with the oppression of ethnic minorities have come to realize the inconsistency of their previous positions. Many who had been deceived by the misuse of the word "discrimination" and its ugly connotations now remember what that word actually means. Maybe Governor Ramer's pledges to continue the state's defense of Amendment 2 means he is one of those people. However, as I have done in private, 1 am publicly calling on Governor Romer to clearly state to the people of Colorado what his personal convictions are on this issue. Whatever those convictions are, should the Colorado Supreme Court uphold Judge Bayless' opinion, we should call upon him to unconditionally assure the people of Colorado that he will carry the appeal of Amendment 2 all the way to the United States Supreme Court. Not "if necessary," but *no matter what.*