Asian Pacific Americans Support Re-Introduction of the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act in California
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December 5, 2006 -- Asian Pacific American civil rights organizations and advocates of marriage equality hailed the introduction of the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act. This legislation seeks to end the exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage and the social support and legal protections that come with it.
According to a recent poll conducted by the Asian Pacific American Legal Center of Southern California and the Asian Law Caucus in San Francisco, APA voters firmly support ending the exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage. A majority (51%) of respondents in Los Angeles County, sixty-eight percent (68%) in San Francisco County, and seventy-two (72%) in the city of Oakland believed that same-sex couples should no longer be excluded from marriage. "Our poll reveals remarkably strong statewide support among Asian Pacific American voters for ending the exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage," noted Karin Wang, Vice-President of Programs for the Asian Pacific American Legal Center of Southern California.
"California is home to the largest population of Asian Pacific American same-sex couples in the nation so the impact of this measure on our communities will be enormous," stated Andy Wong of Asian Equality. According to a study conducted by the Williams Project at UCLA, one in ten same-sex couples in California include at least one Asian Pacific American individual and over 50% of APA same-sex couples are raising children and would benefit from the protections of civil marriage.
