Come this Wednesday, November 9, 2005, my mother and stepfather may no longer be married, according to their home state of Texas. Same for my married friends. And their married parents.

No, it’s not a mass divorce orgy. This is, after all, Texas we’re talking about.

Instead, it’s the potentially fatal error of Texas’ Religious Right, which seeks to add Texas to the growing list of states that have outlawed gay marriage on Tuesday, November 8. (Never mind that the Texas Constitution already prohibits same-sex marriage. Texas legislators just thought we needed a not-so-subtle reminder of that fact that gays remain second-class citizens even after the Supreme Court had the nerve to legalize sodomy in its landmark 2003 Lawrence v. Texas decision.)

It seems that when Texas legislators took time out of their brief, 140-day session to draft an amendment to the Texas Constitution banning gay marriage, they failed to take the time to actually read — much less edit — what they came up with:

Article I, Texas Constitution, (The Bill of Rights) is amended by adding  Section 32 to read as follows:

Sec. 32.  (a) Marriage in this state shall consist only of the union of one man and one woman.

(b) This state or a political subdivision of this state may not create or recognize any legal status identical or similar to marriage.

So is section b just a subtle — but potentially radical — cry for equality? If gays can’t marry or enter into legally recognized domestic partnerships, then neither can heterosexuals?

Unlikely. After all, the Ku Klux Klan didn’t come out in droves in Austin this weekend to show their solidarity with gays.

If voters approve this so-called Proposition 2 on Tuesday, Texas will effectively be outlawing domestic partnerships for gays and heterosexuals alike. But the poorly worded section b will also make it all too easy for divorce lawyers to argue that their clients can’t be granted a divorce because, well, they were never married in the first place. Just what Texas needs — more court clog, less legal reform.  

At least divorce rates would take a drastic downward turn…

The passage of this amendment seemed certain a couple of months ago. But with every major Texas newspaper coming out in opposition to the proposition in the last few weeks, Proposition 2’s fate is less certain.

For the amendment to be approved on Tuesday, its hateful intent will have to trump its inevitably disastrous effects in voters minds. And if that happens, it will only go to show that the time the Texas Legislature used to draft, debate, and vote on the amendment would’ve been better spent passing some much-needed education reform to ensure that Texans learn how to read before they’re bestowed with civic responsibilities.

Laura Nathan-Garner