'Marriage' strategies divide gay advocates
April 4, 2006

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- As homosexual "marriage" advocates battle through the courts for the legal right to "wed," a split has emerged over the best strategy to win.

Two homosexual California men plan to ask a federal appeals court this week to declare that they have a right to "marry" under the U.S. Constitution, but heavyweights in the fight for same-sex "marriage" think that legal tactic is misguided.

Groups such as the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund and the American Civil Liberties Union are withholding funding and other support for the case, saying a U.S. Supreme Court ruling is a likely loser and would set bad precedent.

"We have been very active in trying to win the freedom to marry for same-sex couples," said Jon Davidson, legal director for Lambda. "We think there is a smart way to do that and a less smart way to do that."

Lambda and other groups are waging their campaigns in state courts in California, Iowa, Washington, New Jersey, New York and elsewhere, seeking similar rulings to the one that led to legal homosexual "marriages" in Massachusetts. the rest