8 - The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, June 12, 1996 N 'A
NEWS
State senate: No same-sex marrlag es
1 4 1 j m t t ! I1 4 ^ # A
Ethics conference promotes
community values, harmony
By Katie Wang
Daily News Editor
Marriages between members of the
same sex will not be allowed or recog-
nized by the state of Michigan, voted
the state Senate last week. In an over-
whelming vote of 32-2, the Michigan
Senate passed a bill which would deny
recognition of gay marriages per-
formed in other states.
State Sen. Alma Wheeler Smith (D-
South Lyon) said she voted against the
ban because she thought same-sex
marriages did not demonstrate any
harmful effects on the public's welfare.
"If I thought for one moment that
passing a ban would do anything to
support the quality of families or lower
the divorce rate, then maybe my vote
would've been a 'yes' vote," Smith said.
"This legislation is designed to be polit-
ical and to put people in a difficult
political position"
Smith and Sen. Jackie Vaughn (D-
"This legislation
is designed to be
politICal.. "
- Alma Wheeler Smith
Senator (D-South Lyon)
Detroit) were the two senators who
voted against the ban.
Smith said she was not surprised by
how easily the bill passed because it can
be a very decisive vote in some dis-
tricts.
"I firmly believe I have a district that
is more open-minded and accepting of
differences," she said.
The next step for both bills is Gov.
John Engler's desk where both pieces
of legislation are expected to be
signed into law by the end of next
week.
Same-sex marriage has become an
increasingly heated topic as the
November presidential elections
approach.
Currently, a House Judiciary
Committee in the United States
House of Representatives is consider-
ing a bill known as the "Defense of
Marriage Act."
The bill defines marriage as "a legal
union between one man and one
woman as husband and wife, and the
word 'spouse' refers only to a person of
the opposite sex who is a husband or a
wife."
Thus far, Hawaii is the only state to
legalize same-sex marmages.
By Nathan Huebner
Daily Staff Reporter
Last Thursday, Michael Lerner, edi-
tor of Tikkun magazine and author of
the book Politics of Meaning, spoke at
Washtenaw Community College as part
of the Conference on Politics, Ethics
and Meaning.
The conference was a follow-up to
the Summit on Ethics and Meaning in
Politics that was held in Washington,
D.C. April 14-16. The summit, accord-
ing to Lerner, was a "historic event -
a huge gathering of people committed
to transforming America's public life
and private life, rejecting the ethos of
selfishness and materialism, and com-
mitting themselves to a new ethos of
caring and community."
The same idea of community was
also promoted at Thursday's confer-
ence. The goal of the conference,
according to organizers, was to "further
define the values the existing institu-
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by which they can foster caring rela-
tionships, sustainable communities,
meaningful value-oriented work, and
harmony with the environment."
"Human beings all are deserving of
love and caring," Lerner said.
Lerner said the conference is repre-
sentative of a nationwide moveme
that aims to understand people's ethica
and spiritual needs. The "politics of
meaning" movement is the liberal
answer to the conservative religious
right movement, he said.
"The politics of meaning is the poli-
tics of the image of God," Lerner said.
Several workshops were offered to
those who attended the conference fol-
lowing Lemer's speech. The workshops
were designed to promote the idea of
community and the politics of meaO
ing. Workshop topics included conflict
and negotiation, race relations, urban
planning, and democracy in a universi-
ty.
After a vegetarian dinner that
evening, attendees were given a chance
to "put ideas into action" by forming
task forces on issues ranging from
"spirituality and religious renewal" to
"cynicism and selfishness in thI
media." Afterward, Lerner gave a clo
ing speech on the topic of "Coming
Together," urging cooperation among
members of the community.
The conference in Ann Arbor was
just one of several regional conferences
taking place across the country.
Regional conferences were held in
Seattle, Minneapolis and San Francisco
in May, as well as in both Los Angeles
and Portland in early June.
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