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Show OCTOBER 2004 The West View Page 3 This opinion section is an open forum for community issues. Editorial columns and opinion articles are strictly the opinion of the author. Letters of an indecent or demeaning nature will not be published. Letters will be edited for style and space. Marriage Amendment Discriminates Against Committed Gay Couples From the Editor Just like the changing colors of the leaves outside, The West View is going through some adaptations, As you probably noticed, this issue looks quite different from our past issues. It’s a lot smaller and it’s tucked inside a new community newspaper, the Salt Lake West Journal. We have established a good relationship with the Journal folks, and have found that we have acommon mission. Instead of competing and duplicating efforts, we have decided to work together to offer you both The West View and the Salt Lake West Journal every month in your mailbox. Despite these changes, the original integrity of The West View will remain the same. We will still feature in depth stories about people and places on the West Side, highlighting our community’s rich diversity and history. We still welcome your story and photo contributions, and encourage you to voice your opinion on issues that matter to you. A positive result of this new partnership with The Salt Lake West Journal is that our cir- I would like to respond to Dale J. Neilson’s letter to the editor ‘““Gay Marriage Erodes our Nation’s Foundation” (The West View, Summer tionship with children. I have seen such situations first hand, as I am an elementary school teacher and have taught at my school for over 20 years. I have personally seen the heartache of children who do not have a perfect father and mother (heterosexual) home situation. On the other hand, I have also seen how - Charlotte Fife-Jepperson the love of a committed relationship can make such a difference in the stability and confidence of a child. This can come from a single parent family that is extremely supportive or even from a same sex couple that is very supportive. As long as the child is the number one priority, such situations only add to the welfare and stability of the child. The kind of support that the child receives at home is really a more important factor than the type of family he/she lives with. What bothered me the most about Mr. Neilson’s opinion, culation has instantly increased from 8,000 copies to 24,000 copies and it will be mailed out monthly to every resident and business on the West Side. We hope you will enjoy more timely access to news and stories about your community in both papers. About this issue: As the Nov. 2 election approaches fast, we have included a couple of stories about the power we hold as constituents. We hope this year will bring a huge turnout at the polls. The West Side has traditionally been very politically active, and we hope that our community’s level of civic involvement will only continue to grow. We also believe that if all of the diverse groups in our community could come together to learn about one another and collectively come up with solutions to the challenges we face, our community improvement efforts would be much more consequential. And, if The West View could contribute to that end, our efforts will have been worth it. 2004), in which he wrote that surveys from a website claim that children thrive better in heterosexual-marriage homes. First of all, a survey is only a poll of opinions, most of which lack the credibility of actual knowledge of a gay rela- One of our privileges as U.S. citizens is our right to choose those who will make decisions on our behalf at all levels of government. These include choosing the President of the United States or the Governor of Utah or giving approval to allow an appointed judge to continue to serve. These choices are very difficult ones to make, and depend on citizens who inform themselves about the world they live in and the candidates who are running for office. Understanding the nuts and bolts of the voting process is sometimes difficult. Finding where you should go to vote or keeping track of the political calendar of events can be confusing. Fortunately, there are two great websites available on how to vote. The first is www.voteutah.org. This website is sponsored by KUED TV, KUER FM90, Common Cause Utah, Hinckley Institute of Politics, League of Women Voters, Utah Foundation and Utah Education Network. This is a non-partisan site intended to provide answers to voters' questions about the process of voting. The other site is the Salt Lake County Clerk’s Office at www.clerk.slco.org. At this site, you can find your voting precinct num- - Jerry Monson, Fairpark Community Ambassadors Conduct Successful Voter Registration Drive By Kate Rubalcava Election years bring about changes in the lives of people — political changes that will affect aspects of all our lives, such as health care, immigration, education, gun laws and safety. These are good reasons to get out and vote for candidates you feel will best represent your interests and views. Yet surprisingly, even though an election could change our quality of life, many people are not registered voters and many who are, don’t exercise their right to vote. Putting their political preferences aside, a few west side residents, University acting as Community Neighborhood Partners Ambassadors. with (UNP), decided to address this problem with a voter registration drive. Sponsored by UNP, the Community Ambassador Program is made up of West Side residents, whose purpose is to help people gain a better understanding of their community. They also take on community service projects every year. This year the Community Ambassadors aimed to register 100 voters with their voter registration project. They dedicat- Voting Primer By Edie Trimmer and Billy Palmer is that a "piece of paper" was the difference in the commitment of a couple. I have personally been with my partner for 19 years. Our relationship has been full of the same relationship challenges that married couples experience. This gay marriage issue is not so much about gay marriage, as it is about equal rights, Because this constitutional amendment seeks to take away rights, it is discriminatory and unnecessarily hurtful. Mr. Neilson relied heavily on the Bible and our founding fathers to support his views. But, if you look at our founding fathers in a realistic way, they were a group of rebels who were fighting the status quo in the name of religious and financial freedom. And remember, the Bible was used as a tool to fight against the African American Movement and is still used today within the KKK. Most any gay person that you meet has some sort of religious commitment, but still puts up with discrimination. I decided that I should finally leave the silent majority of the gay community to speak out against this form of discrimination. not to vote, our decision is clear: we want those who are elected to make our decisions for us. In other words, we trust them that much. You can make a lot of big decisions with one short visit to your voting poll. Getting Started—Voter Registration To register to vote in Utah you must be a citizen States of America, Irene Fisher, Director of UNP, said, “I have been very pleased with the process that the Ambassadors used to research various project possibilities and to select this one. They have taken individual leadership roles in carrying out the project.” In order to get the word out, the Ambassadors went through training on the process, learned about the history of voting laws, and then created a brochure. All of that hard work and dedication paid off. They exceeded their goal of registering 100 people. Ambassador Carolynn Hoskins’ favorite aspect was “getting the word out about the importance of being a registered voter and that one voice can make a difference.” Hoskins, a longtime community advocate, urges residents to vote. “Too many people have sacrificed their lives, blood, sweat and tears for us. This shouldn’t be taken with a grain of salt,” she said. Calendar of Important Election Events ber, locate your polling place, and find out who is on the ballot. In this year’s general election, Utahns will decide on 88 elected officials. These are the people who will make important decisions that affect our daily lives. In the years to come, the candidates we elect will shape the world we live in. If we choose of the United ed a lot of time and energy in getting the word out about the importance of voting, registering those eligible and encouraging people to vote. October 13 Final date for mail-in voter registration. October 25 Final date to register to vote in person at the Salt Lake County Clerk's office. October 29 Final date to submit an applica|. tion for absentee voting. have resided in Utah for at least 30 days immediately before the election, and must be 18 years old on or before the election. Although the last day to mail in voter registration forms was October 13, you may still register in person at the Salt Lake County Clerk’s office, located at 2001 South State Street in Salt Lake City, UT. Tuesday, November 2 Vote: i CORRECTION In the last issue of The West View (Summer 2004), a clinician work- For questions about voting, you can call Salt Lake County Clerk's Office, 468-3427. ing with a patient at the Fourth Street Clinic was mistakenly identified as Dr. Adi Gundalapalli in the photo caption. The person shown was Patrick Lang, a volunteer physician's assistant. |