Amendment One passes

Dozens of UNC students wearing yellow “Vote Against N.C. Amendment One” T-shirts said no ­­­— but a majority of North Carolina voters said yes.

In May’s primary election, North Carolina voted 61-39 in favor of Amendment One, a constitutional ban on gay marriage.

The state joined 29 others that have voted to uphold traditional marriage in their constitutions.

North Carolinians favored the amendment by double-digit margins in the months leading up to the primary.

But the amendment met strong student opposition. The UNC Coalition Against Amendment One led campus protest efforts to turn out students at polling places.

Chapel Hill Mayor Mark Kleinschmidt said he was impressed with the amount of student activism.

“It’s not a stretch to say that (students) can be the reason we defeat the amendment,” Kleinschmidt said in a speech at the Vote Against Festival on UNC’s campus in April.

UNC student groups against the amendment were not alone in North Carolina.

Jen Jones, communications director for Equality N.C., ran 322 miles from Wilmington to Asheville with a media team, mobilizing voters against the amendment.

Jones visited more than 20 cities, including Chapel Hill, as part of the Race to the Ballot initiative.

Although the University was barred by law from taking a side on the issue, several UNC faculty and staff members, such as Terri Phoenix, worked to educate the public about the amendment.

Phoenix, director of UNC’s LGBTQ Center, said in February that the amendment’s passing would have consequences at UNC.

“Treating all staff and students equitably will not be possible if this passes,” Phoenix said.

UNC administrators, including Chancellor Holden Thorp, voiced concerns that the amendment might damage student, faculty and staff retention and recruitment.

The nationwide trend against gay marriage reversed on Election Day — three states voted to legalize gay marriage, and Minnesota struck down a proposed constitutional gay marriage ban similar to N.C.’s Amendment One.

But Maxine Eichner, a UNC law professor, said same-sex couples won’t be able to marry in North Carolina anytime soon.

Even if Amendment One were removed from N.C.’s constitution, a state law that outlaws gay marriage would remain in place, she said.

Tami Fitzgerald, executive director of the N.C. Values Coalition, said traditional marriage supporters in the state remain firm.

“The people of North Carolina spoke very clearly six months ago about what they think marriage is — between a man and a woman,” she said.

Contact the desk editor at state@dailytarheel.com.