Backers, foes of gay rights initiatives air views at debate

Myung Oak Kim, Rocky Mountain News

Published October 31, 2006 at midnight

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Inside the Tivoli Student Union on the Auraria campus Monday morning, 30 to 40 students sat quietly as they listened to a contentious debate about the domestic partnership measure on next Tuesday's ballot.

For some students, it was a chance to gain extra credit. For debaters Jim Pfaff, of Focus on the Family, and Pat Steadman, of the Referendum I campaign, it was a chance to pitch their views.

Ref I would allow gay couples to register as domestic partners and obtain many legal rights and responsibilities given to married couples. It is sponsored by Coloradans for Fairness. Focus on the Family is the most vocal opponent.

Colorado voters also will decide Amendment 43, a state constitutional amendment to outlaw gay marriage.

The issue is on the ballot in seven other states, but Colorado is the only place where voters are also being asked to approve domestic partnerships.

Gay rights groups across the country have been targeting young voters, especially those on college campuses, to build support for measures such as Referendum I.

Polls and studies indicate that young voters are much more likely than older voters to support giving spousal rights to same-sex couples.

Almost three out of four Colorado voters under 35 interviewed in a statewide poll in September said they support Referendum I.

That is much higher than the 58 percent overall support for the measure in that poll.

The poll of 500 likely voters was conducted by Public Opinion Strategies for the Rocky Mountain News and CBS 4 News and had a margin of error of 4.38 percentage points.

Tory Lipsey, 20, a student at Metropolitan State College of Denver, said that the gay rights debate "is a battle between the older generations."

"Young adults these days, they are 'live and let live.' This is not a political war between young people."

Lipsey, who describes himself as bisexual, said he wasn't sure how he would vote on Ref I until after he listened to the debate. Before then, he had gotten most of his information from television commercials.

Lipsey says he supports Ref I because gay couples deserve legal rights.

The measure "is basically keeping their lives secure," he said.

But he doesn't believe in gay marriage because he considers marriage a religious institution.

Pfaff argued that Ref I is "counterfeit marriage" because it creates a legal equivalent under state law to that institution for gay couples. He said marriage "is not about the wants and needs of adults" but "about the raising of children."

Pfaff said he doesn't believe that there is a "compelling need" to give gay couples the same legal rights as married couples.

Steadman argued that Ref I fixes legal holes in state law. He said the measure is not marriage because it doesn't apply to federal laws regarding marriage and can't be recognized in other states.

Steadman also contends that Ref I is better for children because it would force gay couples who separate to pay child support and otherwise be responsible for children they had raised together.

Tracy Lovato, 21, of Aurora, a student at the University of Colorado at Denver, said she attended the debate to get extra credit for a class. She said she agrees with the Focus on the Family stance and disagrees with nearly all of her classmates on this issue.

Lovato, who describes herself as a devout Christian, said she opposes Referendum I because it would create a "slippery slope" toward gay marriage, which she opposes based on her religious beliefs.

Alex Mayorga, a 20-year-old Metro State student from Lafayette, sat at a table outside the student center chatting with a friend about their classes. He said students and friends aren't talking much about the issue. For him, the big election draw is Amendment 44, which would legalize possession of up to 1 ounce of marijuana by adults 21 and older.

As for Referendum I, he said, "I see no reason to vote against it. It's definitely not as controversial as it used to be."

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