Poll shows marriage eqaulity support; most Hoosiers say no to constitutional ban

Dawn Haecker shares a lot with the person she loves: a last name, a home, a commitment to each other and to the parenting of their 2-month-old son, Arlo. But one thing is missing: a marriage certificate. As a same-sex couple, they are prohibited by Indiana law from obtaining a marriage certificate. And if an effort continues in the state legislature, the state constitution would prohibit as much, as well. But Haecker and her partner, Kari Haecker, are hoping that Indiana, and the nation, may be having a change of heart. A new poll, taken for the Bowen Center for Public Affairs at Ball State University and WISH-TV, found that 54 percent of those polled opposed changing Indiana’s constitution to ban same-sex marriage. Thirty-eight percent supported it. That trepidation about enshrining the ban in the constitution apparently outweighed Hoosier ambivalence about legalizing same-sex marriage. On that question, the poll indicated that Hoosiers were split, with 45 percent favoring legalization and 45 percent opposing it. However, about 55 percent supported legalizing civil unions that would give same-sex couples the same rights as married heterosexual couples.