Jimmy Holcomb: Gay marriage ban bill will not die

Regarding the April 13 news article “Proposed gay marriage ban is dead, House speaker says”: The “Gay-Marriage Nullification Bill” has died after a few short minutes of life. But it was just a re-vivified corpse, destined to rise again. It’s lifeless, but not dead.

The week of Thomas Jefferson’s birthday, four legislators ignored everything Jefferson and James Madison ever wrote about religion in government. These legislators are sad that the Supreme Court made official what we’ve known since the enlightenment: No religious book holds any constitutional power over any citizen of this country.

These four theocrats are also concerned that the high court occasionally decides that some “traditional” practices aren’t constitutional, like owning other people or denying women the vote. This pining for “traditional” discrimination isn’t just an anomaly from the Bible Belt.

The lengthy dissents from conservative justices in the Obergefell decision all lamented the loss of “traditional” marriage. Thank goodness for justices willing to say “no, that’s a bad tradition, and it’s unconstitutional.” Gov. Roy Cooper has weighed in with an appeal for more, not fewer, LGBTQ protections.

I’m in a same-sex marriage, but this undead bill is about more than the right to marry. It’s about the extraordinary vision of a true separation of church and state. Happy Birthday, Mr. Jefferson!

This story was originally published April 13, 2017 at 8:25 PM with the headline "Jimmy Holcomb: Gay marriage ban bill will not die."