The
American
Psychological
Association
will
move
its
meetings
out
of
Virginia
because
of
the
possible
impact
of
the
Affirmation
of
Marriage
Act
and
a
proposed
gay
marriage
ban
on
its
members
and
their
domestic
partners.
The
APA
announced
July
21
that
governance
meetings
scheduled
to
be
held
in
Virginia
in
2007
and
2008
will
be
moved
to
Washington,
D.C.
“Some
of
our
staff
are
gay
and
lesbian,”
said
Clinton
Anderson,
staff
liaison
of
the
APA’s
Lesbian,
Gay
&
Bisexual
Concerns
office.
“They
expressed
concerns
that
hospitals
and
emergency
rooms
might
not
honor
powers
of
attorney.
People
felt
unsafe
in
their
lives
about
meeting
in
Virginia.”
The
APA
Committee
on
Lesbian,
Gay
&
Bisexual
Concerns
expressed
its
unease
about
the
marriage
act,
as
well
as
Virginia’s
proposed
constitutional
ban
on
gay
marriage,
saying
that
the
“specific
impact
of
the
Virginia
law
is
difficult
to
know
—
actual
cases
will
determine
its
ultimate
impact.”
“CLGBC
has
strong
concerns
that
facilities
in
the
state
might
refuse
to
honor
legal
documents,
such
as
a
medical
power
of
attorney,
between
non-married
partners,”
the
statement
reads.
“The
fear
is
that
hospitals
in
the
state
might
construe
such
documents
that
have
been
executed
by
gay
or
lesbian
couples
as
prohibited
by
state
law
and
thus
refuse
to
honor
them.”
Anderson
said
the
committee
took
two
years
to
make
a
decision
about
whether
to
move
its
meetings
out
of
Virginia.
When
the
Affirmation
of
Marriage
Act
was
passed
in
2004,
the
group
decided
to
advocate
its
support
for
gay
marriage,
while
keeping
its
meetings
in
Virginia.
But
when
the
amendment
to
ban
gay
marriage
was
put
on
the
ballot
for
the
upcoming
November
election,
the
group
faced
a
tough
decision.
“People
felt
there
wasn’t
much
of
a
hope
for
our
being
in
there
and
having
an
impact,”
he
said.
“We
didn’t
want
to
punish
Virginia,
especially
since
some
of
the
counties
are
gay-friendly.”
He
insisted
the
APA’s
action
does
not
constitute
a
boycott
of
Virginia,
but
is
motivated
out
of
concern
for
APA
members
and
staff.
When
asked
if
the
association
would
go
back
to
holding
its
meetings
in
Virginia
if
the
amendment
fails
this
fall,
Anderson
said
he
did
not
know.
“The
original
law
still
exists,”
he
said.
“It
won’t
be
overturned
or
removed.
We
are
unlikely
to
go
back
to
Virginia
until
[the
Affirmation
of
Marriage
Act]
is
repealed.
Just
having
the
amendment
not
pass
would
not
change
our
decision
at
this
point.”
The
Marriage
Affirmation
Act
makes
illegal
any
“partnership
contract
or
other
arrangement
between
persons
of
the
same
sex
purporting
to
bestow
the
privileges
or
obligations
of
marriage.”
Opponents
of
the
law
argue
that
it
invalidates
personal
contracts
entered
into
by
gay
couples,
including
wills,
medical
powers
of
attorney
and
more.
Several
groups
called
for
a
boycott
of
Virginia
by
businesses
and
tourists
after
the
Marriage
Affirmation
Act
passed,
with
little
lasting
result.
Martha
Steger,
public
relations
director
for
the
Virginia
Office
of
Tourism,
said
she
was
unaware
of
the
APA’s
decision
to
relocate
its
meetings
but
that
her
office
is
not
concerned.
“I
don’t
think
one
example
is
indicative
of
a
trend,”
she
said.
“It
would
be
speculative
at
this
point.”
She
said
the
tourism
office
works
with
convention
and
visitors
bureaus
and
resorts
all
over
Virginia
and
she
has
not
heard
of
any
groups
that
are
refusing
to
come
to
the
state
or
are
relocating
to
other
states
because
of
gay
marriage.
“We
have
been
contacted
by
gays
who
have
said
they
have
been
coming
to
Virginia
for
a
long
time
and
know
that
people
are
welcoming,”
she
said.
“People
on
both
sides
of
the
issue
have
e-mailed
us
in
the
past
two
or
three
years.
I’ve
gotten
maybe
six
isolated
e-mails
in
two
years.
It’s
just
interesting
that
some
people
take
the
legislative
aspect
more
seriously
than
others.”
Bad
for
business?
Ray
Warren,
an
Arlington
County
resident
and
head
of
the
Virginia
Way,
hopes
more
Virginia
organizations
and
businesses
will
mount
an
economic
protest
against
the
amendment
effort.
He
said
other
organizations
have
taken
a
stand
in
other
states
and
affected
change
through
economics.
“In
South
Carolina,
there
was
a
controversy
over
flying
the
Confederate
flag
over
the
Capitol,”
he
said.
“The
NAACP
called
for
a
boycott
that
was
widely
observed
and
hurt
the
state
badly.
Why
take
a
chance
with
an
amendment
when
it
is
so
hard
to
undo
the
damage?
We
would
have
to
go
back
to
the
amendment
process
to
fix
it.”
Warren
is
a
former
judge
and
conservative
Republican
state
senator.
He
is
now
on
a
two-month
leave
from
his
job
as
executive
director
of
a
Washington
non-profit
organization
to
campaign
against
the
Virginia
marriage
amendment.
His
organization
is
a
member
of
the
Virginia
Commonwealth
Coalition
fighting
the
amendment
and
focuses
on
reaching
politically
moderate
voters
who
oppose
the
amendment
for
economic
reasons.
“The
majority
of
Virginians
oppose
gay
marriage,”
he
said.
“If
the
debate
is
about
gay
marriage
the
amendment
will
pass
and
we
will
lose.
But
if
it
is
about
the
economic
impact
of
the
amendment,
we
may
win.
This
amendment
is
not
about
marriage,
it’s
about
business.”
Warren,
who
is
gay
and
has
a
partner,
said
the
term
“marriage
...
