Tennessee Representative Joe Carr (R-Lascassas) is pushing a resolution (HJR839) that criticizes the federal courts for granting a preliminary injunction to recognize the same-sex marriages of three Tennessee couples who were wed in states with marriage equality.
The resolution urges the state attorney general to defend the Tennessee marriage amendment, which says that marriage is between a man and a woman, in court. But the attorney general is already doing just that.
In mid-March, a federal judge issued the injunction that forced the state to honor the legal (in other states) same-sex marriages of Memphians Ijpe DeKoe and Thom Kostura and two other Tennessee couples who last year filed a federal lawsuit against the state’s ban on same-sex marriage. The state has appealed to the Sixth Circuit.
A Facebook status from the Tennessee Equality Project (TEP) says Carr’s resolution “has no effect other than to express a desire to see discrimination continue.”
“While Rep. Carr releases a last gasp of hate and discrimination before the 108th General Assembly goes home, the Tennessee Equality Project is preparing for marriage equality,” reads TEP’s Facebook post. “‘Tennessee Ready for Marriage on DAY ONE’ is our new initiative to make sure we are prepared for the inevitable march of real liberty in our state.”
Through its “Tennessee Ready for Marriage on DAY ONE” campaign, TEP hopes to gather unwed Tennessee same-sex couples who would be willing to tie the knot on the first day that it’s legal. Those interested can fill out this survey.
To view Carr’s resolution, go here.
