pluralisms:

which, by the way, is ALREADY illegal in NC. The amendment, which will be voted on May 8th, says that  ”“Marriage between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized in this state.” 

This has severe consequences for all unmarried couples in the state, straight or gay, and especially for unmarried women, who are significantly more likely to be victims of domestic violence: 

• If the Amendment is passed, the application of North Carolina’s domestic violence laws themselves will be left open for question—threatening our state’s victims of domestic violence. 
• Additionally, the work done by numerous state agencies relying upon current domestic violence laws will be thrown into flux, and the protections and resources afforded to North Carolinians in abusive relationships could be seriously and dangerously eroded.
• If the Amendment passes, the protections to members of unmarried couples may be rendered unconstitutional as witnessed in Ohio following passage of an amendment less restrictive than that being considered in North Carolina.
  • Ohio passed a marriage amendment in 2004. Its language is narrower than North Carolina’s proposed constitutional amendment and it was passed for the same reason – to prohibit same sex marriage. 
  • Seven Ohio state trial courts and two appellate courts, in at least 27 cases, construed the language of the Ohio marriage amendment broadly, holding its state’s domestic violence statute unconstitutional because it protected unmarried cohabitants.
  • This means that dozens of batterers were able to walk free and their victims of domestic violence are living in fear because of an amendment that was even less restrictive than the one currently being proposed in North Carolina.

Read more here. Trigger warning at the link for specific stories about abuse & abusers who were allowed to walk free in other states after they passed similar amendments. This is super, super important!