Baltimore mayor denounces NOM

Baltimore mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake testifies in favor of the Maryland marriage bill. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key

Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake denounced the tactics being used by the National Organization for Marriage. The anti-gay group that produced infamous race-baiting memos has funded a significant portion of the Maryland Marriage Alliance’s signature gathering efforts, according to official disclosure reports filed with the state. The Alliance spent about $70,000 collecting signatures, with about $25,000 in cash coming from NOM. It also gave the Alliance an additional $58,000 of in-kind donations for the petition drive.

“Regardless of where you are on the marriage issue, there is no room for racial exploitation,” said Rawlings-Blake. “Marriage equality is about building stronger families and protecting children of same-sex couples, and their efforts to divide Marylanders based on race is a tactic that will hurt us all.”

In March a federal court ordered NOM’s internal documents to be unsealed. One of NOM’s key goals, according to the documents, is to “drive a wedge between gays and blacks — two key Democratic constituencies … Fanning the hostility raised in the wake of Prop 8 is key.”