She told Flory and the caucus that the issue before them was about civil rights, not sex. Flory's amendment failed, as opponents pointed out the unwieldy nature of the proposition and its failure to address the Supreme Court mandate. His amendment was defeated. Later in the day, as hundreds of supporters of equal rights for gays and lesbian gathered outside the building for a candlelight vigil, Corren offered an amendment that would have replaced the entire bill with language that would include gays and lesbians in marriage statutes. You know marriage when you see it.
Marriage is what married people do.
As expected, Corren's amendment was defeated soundly. In a public display of support for the legislation they had drafted, the entire membership of the Judiciary Committee voted against it, even though several of them have advocated for a bill that would do exactly what Corren proposed. He said he was personally for the people who have said we can't deny rights to people because they are different. Our lives, in the midst of historic prejudice and historic discrimination, are to my view, in some ways, miracles. The impassioned extemporaneous speech by the General Assembly's only openly gay member brought tears to many eyes and inspired fellow legislators to move that the entire address be recorded in the House Journal, a rare occurrence.