Log Cabin Republicans Launch Campaign to Reform Virginia Sodomy Statute
Gay.com,
January 24, 2002
The Log Cabin Republican Club of Virginia has launched a campaign in
support of a bill (HB 1140) introduced by Del. James Dillard, a Republican
from Fairfax County, to eliminate criminal penalties for sodomy between
consenting adults in private. Sodomy is now a felony in Virginia punishable by
up to five years in prison under the state’s Crimes Against Nature (CAN)
statute, which outlaws all acts of oral or anal sex, including those between
husband and wife. Del. Dillard’s bill, which would also increase penalties
for public sex from a misdemeanor to a felony, has been referred to the House
Courts of Justice Committee.
According to the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, Virginia is one
of only 13 states that still have a sodomy law on the books, and the law has
been selectively enforced against gay men and lesbians. Jeffrey Miller,
president of the Log Cabin Republican Club of Virginia, said, "The CAN
statute is wrong not only because it punishes private, voluntary behavior, but
because it stigmatizes an entire class of people by defining their behavior in
the criminal code as a felony. Furthermore, those convicted under this law
will have a felony conviction on their record, harming their chances to gain
employment or receive a professional license, all for acts that most adults
engage in."
Log Cabin Republicans are working with Virginians for Justice, a
non-partisan, statewide gay rights organization, and Virginia Partisans, a gay
Democratic organization, to win support for Del. Dillard’s bill, and all
three groups recently co-sponsored a reception together for state legislators
in Richmond. Log Cabin members are lobbying members of the Committee and have
begun a publicity campaign urging voters to contact their state
representatives voicing support for the bill. The Club is also contacting
newspaper editorial boards around the state urging their support for CAN
reform.
Virginia’s legislative session lasts sixty days. CAN reform efforts have
fallen short in the past two legislative sessions, but Del. Dillard’s
support is seen as critical because it marks the first time a sodomy reform
bill has had a Republican patron.
The Log Cabin Republican Club of Virginia is a group of mainstream gay and
lesbian Republicans who support a more open and inclusive Republican Party. A
copy of HB 1140 and updates on CAN reform can be found at [http://www.valogcabin.org/canreform/].
More information about the club can be found at its website, www.VaLogCabin.org.
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Log Cabin Republican Club of Virginia Email: info@VaLogCabin.org
On the Web: www.VaLogCabin.org
Contact: David Lampo at (202) 789-5286 or Jeffrey Miller at (202) 293-7922
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