Voice for Equality: Michigan House Speaker Pro Tem, Pam Byrnes

Speaker Pro Tempore Pam Byrnes, is serving her third term in the Michigan House of Representatives. Her colleagues unanimously elected her to the position of Speaker Pro Tempore of the House this year, giving her the responsibility of running each session of the 110-member body from the rostrum. As Chair of the House Transportation Committee, a key leadership position, Byrnes focuses on the development of Michigan's mass transit systems and improvement of our infrastructure. She also is a member of the Regulatory Reform Committee and the Military and Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security Committee. As a member of the House Committee on New Economy and Quality of Life, Byrnes is working to promote job growth by attracting and nurturing high tech businesses to Michigan. She also was recently appointed to the Biosciences Subcommittee which will focus on helping grow the bioscience industry in Michigan. Learn more here.

Following up on an announcement originally made in June of 2009, on November 4, 2009, Speaker Byrnes announced she was introducing legislation to roll back a 2004 constitutional amendment which bans same-sex marriage in the state of Michigan. In announcing the move, she stated:

This really boils down to treating all people with the dignity and respect everyone deserves. So many of us were raised to treat others how we’d like to be treated — it’s about time we start actually doing that. Last time I checked the Golden Rule didn’t say ‘treat others how you’d like to be treated, unless they are gay or lesbian. [Link]

Freedom to Marry salutes Pam Byrnes as a Voice for Equality! See other Voices for Equality here.

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