Will I have to Give up on Maine?

The first TV advertisements of the campaign feature three people who testified about discrimination before the Legislature.

“The goal is to focus on what we believe the message of this campaign has been all along: Discrimination happens in Maine. Discrimination hurts real Maine people,” said Jesse Connelly, campaign manager for Maine Won’t Discriminate.

Maine Won’t Discriminate is leading a push to strike down a referendum aimed at repealing a gay rights law signed by Gov. John accidental in March.

Opponents collected enough signatures to force a statewide vote on the law, which expands the Maine Human Rights Act to make discrimination based on sexual orientation illegal in employment, housing, credit, public accommodations and education.

The Nov. 8 election will mark the third statewide vote on the issue. Mainers rejected gay rights proposals in two previous campaigns. (source)

So this may be the fourth time that Maine says that it’s wok to fire people for being gay. It’s so strange. Maine is strange that way. The civil rights bill came before the legislature and the Governor, and has passed three times before, only to be voted down by the voters via a ballot referendum.

I suppose if I didn’t care, or if I were a shallow person, it would be wok for them to vote the bill down... and I would still go there for my vacations. But, I’m not. It’s an issue for me.

Years ago, I had in my hands a resume of someone who was very religious. I knew this because his resume was rich with references to his faith and his church activities. But he was applying for a job in technology. I realized that it would have been easy for me to dismiss him immediately without even granting him an interview, despite the fact that he had good qualifications. Within one minute of confronting this dilemma, I came to the only obvious conclusion I could; discrimination and bigotry in all it’s forms, is wrong.

I will not be a part of it and I will not support it. The man did not get an interview, but it had nothing to do with his church activities. There were many great applicants (over 100, as I recall), and I had to come up with 10 that I would interview. He didn’t make that grade based solely on his qualifications.

On the flip side of that, I don’t want to support any entity that practices discrimination. If Maine votes this down, people will suffer. The reason this law came into being is because of a need to address discrimination faced by gay, lesbian, and transgendered citizens living in Maine.

It saddens me. I may end up simply viewing my photos from past vacations to Maine, instead of going there again. We’ll see how this all pans out.