Carleton College Faculty Opposes Minnesota Marriage Amendment

Carleton College faculty members on Monday took a symbolic vote to oppose the proposed Minnesota marriage amendment.

On Nov. 6, Minnesotans will vote on a proposed constitutional amendment that would define marriage as between a man and a woman—which would limit marriage to opposite sex couples.

Carleton Faculty President Clara Hardy told Northfield Patch that faculty members had a thoughtful and civil discussion about whether or not to address the amendment.

"The decision to move ahead to consider and vote on the resolution was more difficult than the decision to pass the resolution once we got to that point," she said. "But I thought the faculty did a great job acknowledging and responding to the arguments on both sides, and everyone I've spoken to since is very happy that we passed the resolution."

The resolution passed Monday reads as:

WHEREAS the proposed constitution amendment would limit the freedom to marry for same-sex couples,

• We, the Carleton College faculty, affirm the statement of diversity approved by the College's Faculty, Council, and Board of Trustees that "The core principles of a liberal arts education are based on mutual respect, communication, and engagement, which commits us to create and affirm a culture of respect for people in all aspects of their lives";
• The College's Faculty, Council, and Board of Trustees have further declared that "Carleton College is dedicated to attracting and retaining a diverse faculty, staff, student body, and sees this as among our highest priorities";

THUS WHEREAS the proposed amendment, by its discrimination against same-sex couples would clearly violate our community goals, standards, and ethics,

AND WHEREAS the proposed amendment would undermine and impede the College's efforts to recruit and retain the very best students, faculty and staff members,

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Carleton College faculty opposes the proposed Minnesota constitutional amendment, "Recognition of Marriage Solely Between One Man and One Woman."

By passing a resolution opposing the amendment, the Carleton faculty joins the faculties from the University of Minnesota, William Mitchell College of Law, Hamline University, Gustavus Adolphus College, Macalester College and St. Olaf College, which passed a resolution in August.

As an institution, Carleton College won't take a stance on the issue.

Eric Sieger, director of media relations for Carleton, shared the following statement with Patch last month:

We’re proud of our record of being an inclusive, supportive community, and we clearly value the personal choices and commitments of every member of the Carleton family.

Carleton fulfills its mission and lives up to its aspirations by educating our students about issues that impact our society and encouraging our students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends to think, speak, and act as individuals on the basis of their informed convictions.  While the College may on occasion take public positions on educational issues where we have special expertise to offer that is necessary to illuminate a wider debate (e.g., affirmative action, financial aid programs for underprivileged students), we do not take political stances on social issues that do not involve our core educational mission. 

Vote No Support

The "Vote No" movement has been growing in Northfield since June when more than 250 people gathered at Carleton's Weitz Center for Creativity in support of Rice County Votes No, an effort to defeat the proposed amendment.

Petitions have since popped up on both the St. Olaf and Carleton College campuses opposing the amendment.

A group of alumni from Carleton College is petitioning the college to take a stand against the issue. That petition has collected 330 signatures. There's also a Facebook group called Carleton Alumni for Marriage Equality supporting the effort. A St. Olaf petition opposing the amendment has garnered more than 1,000 signatures. St. Olaf Votes NO! is also on Facebook.

Following the St. Olaf faculty vote, Minnesotans United for All Families released the following statement:

Each time a city, faculty, business or community of faith speaks out against this amendment it sparks conversations all across the state about what marriage means and who should have the freedom to participate in it. We are proud to see more and more Minnesotans say that they will treat all people the way they want to be treated, instead of singling out same-sex couples and excluding them from the freedom to marry.

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More marriage amendment posts on Northfield Patch

• Marriage Amendment: Should the Northfield City Council Oppose It?
• St. Olaf Faculty Opposes Minnesota Marriage Amendment
• Carleton Responds to Petition to Oppose Marriage Amendment
• Alumni Petition Carleton College to Oppose Marriage Amendment
• Minnesota Companies that Oppose the Marriage Amendment
• Minnesota Companies that Support the Marriage Amendment
• Just Food Co-op Signs as Coalition Partner with Minnesotans United for All Families
• POLL: Do You Approve Of The Marriage Amendment's Ballot Title?
• Why I Am Voting Yes for the Minnesota Marriage Amendment
• A Legacy—A Poem Opposing the Minnesota Marriage Amendment
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• One Reason I Oppose the Marriage Amendment: The Children
• For the Sake of Minnesota's Constitution—JUST VOTE NO!
• VIDEO: Rice County Group Launches Campaign Against MarriageAmendment
• PHOTOS: Rice County Group Launches Campaign Against Marriage Amendment