Bipartisan group says gay marriage is about commitment, not equality

A group called the “Commitment Campaign” is urging LGBT activists and allies to shift the focus of gay marriage away from equality and toward the value of commitment.  According to USA Today, “advocates have long made the case that legalizing marriage for gays and lesbians is a matter of equality, but those who frame the issue that way might be reinforcing a belief among many Americans in the middle on the issue that gays and lesbians want to marry for different reasons than straight couples.”

The shift comes in wake of a poll conducted by Third Way and Grove Insight. In their findings, when straight Americans were asked why “couples like you” may want to marry, 58 percent of respondents said “to publicly acknowledge their love and commitment to each other.” When Americans were asked why gays and lesbians would want to marry, the responses were split between two replies: “Love and commitment” and “rights and benefits.”

The Commitment Campaign, a part of the organization Third Way, will launch Monday, and has already gained the support of Gov. Martin O’Malley (D-Maryland), Gov. Lincoln Chafee (I-Rhode Island), Christine Todd Whitman (R-New Jersey), and Ken Mehlman, the former chairman of the Republican National Committee.

“In this fast-evolving issue, we’re all searching for common ground,” O’Malley told USA TODAY ahead of the campaign launch. “And the way to have a conversation with those who would be inclined not to support marriage equality is to search for those common values that we share.”

The California Log Cabin Republicans have supported the Commitment Campaign after noting there has been a “fundamental flaw” in the way gay marriage has been presented, contributing to 31 straight defeats throughout various states which have tried to pass same-sex marriage legislation.

“This is a real radical way of changing the approach in communicating why gay marriage equality is important,” said Moran.