Last Thursday, the Wisconsin Family Council, Inc. released a statement titled, “Will WI Supreme Court Uphold the Will of the People on Marriage?” I found the document almost laughable.

The WFC’s statement was in response to the Wisconsin Court of Appeals’ decision to defer the case challenging the Marriage Protection Amendment to the Wisconsin Supreme Court. They called this decision, happening two days after the Supreme Court election and “not even a week” after Iowa and Vermont’s decisions “ironic.” It’s not ironic — it’s simply common sense.

According to its website, the WFC was founded in 1986 to advance Judeo-Christian principles and values in Wisconsin by strengthening and preserving marriage, family, life and liberty. They also cite themselves as, “an information source for the general public, churches and policymakers of our state.” I could be mistaken, but since when does propaganda serve as solid, unbiased information?

For many Wisconsin residents, and countless others throughout the country, the referendum passing the Marriage Protection Amendment in 2006 was devastating. It meant, amongst other things, an institutionalized second-class status for Wisconsin’s gay community. Applauded by Christian organizations such as the Alliance for Marriage and the WFC, the amendment “defined” marriage as a union between a man and a woman.

Aside from the fact it is difficult to “define” marriage as anything other than something ending in divorce 50 percent of the time, the amendment very likely violated another definition — the definition of an amendment itself. In July of 2007, Bill McConkey, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, filed suit challenging the amendment, claiming it addresses two subjects: marriage and civil unions. The Wisconsin Constitution says if more than one amendment is submitted, voters must be able to vote for or against the amendments separately. This was not the case when the amendment was voted on in 2006.

McConkey’s suit, scoffed at from the beginning by groups like the WFC, has been stuck in a legislative game of ping-pong since 2007, and to everyone’s surprise, was referred to the Wisconsin Supreme Court on April 9. On May 30 of last year, the Dane County Circuit Court ruled the amendment did not violate the single-subject provision, but McConkey appealed in July.

In a fair society, every group deserves a voice and the right to defend its beliefs. Unfortunately, this includes the WFC. While staying in the United Kingdom for the first half of 2008, I was asked more or less the same question every time politics came up in conversation — “What the hell is wrong with American politics?” Like anyone else would, I laughed, but when I realized they were serious, they clarified a little more for me.

The Brits, like many others I’m sure, think we’re nuts. No surprise there, really. The wacky American politics they see, however, is an institution where religion and governance — church and state — are mercilessly intertwined. I was told by a man in a pub once, “If one of our blokes even mentioned God in a speech, he’d be chased off the stage.” Imagine how they would have taken to Huckabee.

Although British culture would hardly fit in over here, my buddy at the pub made an excellent, although slightly oversimplified point. If the WFC is serious (which I’m sure it is) about it’s support of the Marriage Protection Amendment, it needs to hire a few more lawyers and come up with a better argument in favor of the amendment other than releasing a statement ladled with phrases such “law of the land” and “foundational societal institution.”

In all hopes, McConkey’s case will be fairly and impartially judged on its arguments within the boundaries of law, and not by its perceived threat to an outdated and narrowly applied definition of marriage.

At the end of their Thursday press release, the WFC has placed their mission statement: “The Wisconsin Family Council is a statewide, not-for-profit organization advancing Judeo-Christian values in Wisconsin by strengthening and preserving marriage, family, life and liberty.”

If they want to throw the word irony around, I find it ironic that they claim to preserve and strengthen liberty. If this is the case, Judeo-Christian values don’t belong anywhere in the Wisconsin State Constitution.

Laura Brennan ([email protected]) is a senior majoring in communicative disorders