Colorado and Gay Rights

Colorado is (was?) the epicenter of a very well defined anti-gay movement, but even there change is coming. Colorado sidles up to civil unions - The Denver Post Employment protection, the ability of gays to adopt their partner's children, end-of-life decision-making, etc. Colorado is reflecting the change that's happening.

Take non-discrimination laws for example. Is it an attack on the sacred-right of employers to fire gays/lesbians to ensure job non-discrimination?

It hasn't generated a backlash or caused the sky to fall," [Pat Steadman, who represents Equal Rights Colorado] said.

"The average person in Colorado realizes that, by and large, their lives are completely unaffected by whether the worker next to them has job protections like every other worker."

The latest legislation has the Right in an uproar - of course.

House Bill 1266, which passed the 2009 legislature, also gives unwed couples a quick and inexpensive way to give a partner the power to make end-of-life decisions, ensure that a dependent partner receives wrongful death and insurance benefits and a host of other estate-planning rights. Both critics and advocates liken the legislation to civil unions.

Almost all of New England has gay marriage, as does Iowa. Consider what happened to a bigot in the Colorado Senate.

When Sen. Scott Renfroe, R-Greeley, earlier this year used a Bible verse to liken homosexuals to murderers and noted the biblical punishment was death, the backlash was swift. Renfroe apologized shortly after.

Hate is not a family value. If change can come to Colorado, where will it be next?