Daily Dish features Black Mountain letter on Amendment One

Andrew Sullivan’s popular political blog, the Daily Dish, has featured a letter from a Black Mountain resident on Amendment One:

Reporting from Black Mountain, NC. It didn’t hit home until last night when my wife came back after seeing a vote Amendment One sign stuck on the corner of the street where our two friends and their two children live. I can’t imagine how hurtful it is to have one of your direct neighbors advocating publicly that you can’t marry the person you love. My first thought was to kick over the sign, or add a sign stating, “I am a prejudice bigot.” Instead, my wife and I have been texting and calling our friends to make sure they are voting today. Not sure it will make a difference.

I would like to add one thing to your discussion on gay marriage: I think you are missing some of the framing by people against gay marriage.

Here in rural North Carolina they have managed to convince themselves and their congregations that they are under attack, that they are the victims, that this is not about gay people as much as it is an attack on their culture, their churches, and their god by outsiders. The campaign against Amendment One has been poor in response – as opinion polls show that there is confusion about what people are exactly voting for. There have been some positive signs of religious coalitions speaking out against the amendment. Asheville is known as a progressive center for the Southeast. We have a large and open lesbian population, and for the first time last weekend I saw a male couple on the streets of Asheville being openly affectionate.

These battles against gay marriage will eventually be defeated, but they are very painful now, especially to our friends and neighbors and their children.