Marriage amendment opponents rally at U of M

With eight days to go before the election, the campaign working to defeat the proposed marriage amendment rallied supporters in Minneapolis Monday evening to become the first state to defeat an amendment blocking same-sex marriage.

The list of guests speaking on Northrop Plaza at the University of Minnesota included Democratic senators Al Franken and Amy Klobouchar, as well as Minnesota Vikings punter Chris Kluwe, and actress and Minnesota-native Rachel Leigh Cook.

Kluwe who has made ads to help defeat the amendment, said America is built on inclusion, not exclusion.

"Our Statue of Liberty says bring us your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be free. It does not say 'stay out gays.' It does not say 'stay out Jews' or 'Stay out Muslims,' Kluwe said. "That's not what America was about. America was built on bringing together a wide variety of people and treating them all as American citizens."

Polls show Minnesotans are nearly evenly divided over the marriage amendment.

Minnesotans United for All Families Campaign Manager Richard Carlbom talked about how close the amendment contest has become.

"Back in January, we were only at 43 percent," Carlbom said, "but today because of your hard work, we've moved that needle and we're at 49 percent. We've got one more percent to go!"

Constitutional amendments require approval from more than 50 percent of ballots cast in order to pass.

A spokesperson for Minnesota for Marriage, the main group working to pass the amendment said, "Rallies don't win elections"

Supporters of the amendment say they're focused on getting out the vote.

• Follow Sasha Aslanian on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/sashaaslanian

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