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CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Inside northeast Charlotte’s Holy Covenant United Church of Christ, Reverend Nancy Ellett Allison has been performing same sex marriages since 2006. She says, “I respect the religious freedom of those clergy who would say they would not ever do a wedding for a same sex couple. And I would hope they would offer me the same respect in regard.”
Allison, along with eight other clergy members, six same-sex couples, and the governing body of the United Church of Christ filed a federal claim Monday, challenging the constitutionality of marriage laws in North Carolina, including Amendment One.
The case is one of 66 pending across the country, but it is reportedly the first to address First Amendment religious freedom claims. Allison says, “At this point in time, I am prohibited from exercising my religious freedom by performing a wedding ceremony for [for example] Kathy and Lisa, who have been members of this congregation for longer than I have been pastor for this congregation.”
In North Carolina, under General Statute 51-6 and 51-7, clergy who perform marriages for couples who don’t have a license are guilty of a class one misdemeanor and face a $200 fine. Same sex couples currently cannot get a marriage license in North Carolina.
“No one in North Carolina really believes that there should be criminal prosecution for believing differently about the issue, but we want the court to set that straight, that cannot happen,” says Tin Fulton Walker & Owner Attorney Luke Largess.
Largess says his plaintiffs have a good shot at winning their case. He says they are not challenging churches who are anti-same sex marriage. Largess says, “It’s not asking the court to tell them they are wrong. It is to ask the court to tell them we can’t be threatened with crime because we view the situation differently.”
According to the Campaign for Southern Equality, 62 percent of voters under the age of 30 in North Carolina support the freedom to marry. 34 percent of all North Carolina voters do not.
