SLP Residents Join Marriage Amendment Fight

St. Louis Park residents are getting involved in the fight over a proposed constitutional amendment that would .

On Wednesday, donation totals to the main groups on either side of the issue were made public. Minnesota for Marriage, a coalition of groups formed in an effort to get the marriage amendment approved this November, raised $830,000 in 2011. The group has not publicly released its full donor list.

"Not only have we generated a great deal of financial support for the campaign, we have generated incredible, broad-based citizens support," Minnesota for Marriage Chairman John Helmberger told the Star Tribune.

On the other side of the coin, Minnesotans United for All Families raised $1.2 million from more than 5,000 donors in 2011. Of those donors, 10 were St. Louis Park residents, and one local business—ROR Tax Professionals—raised $1,000.

St. Louis Park‘s three legislators have all spoken against a constitutional ban on gay marriage. Perhaps most notable has been Rep. Steve Simon (DFL-District 44A), who asked at a committee hearing last year, "How many more gay people does God have to create before we ask ourselves whether or not God actually wants them around?"

became a big YouTube draw and garnered the legislator some national attention.