Amendment One retaliation: Petition surfaces to move DNC out of Charlotte

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Tuesday night’s passage of North Carolina’s marriage amendment has a wrinkle, and this one is casting a shadow on the Democratic National Convention.

In the early morning hours after Amendment One was passed, a group of activists mounted a charge to move the DNC out of Charlotte. So far, the petition has more than 19,000 signatures.

“In protest, the Democratic National Convention Committee should move its convention to a state that upholds values of equality and liberty, and which treats all citizens equally,” the petition reads.

The petition was created by Gay Marriage USA, a group based out of New York City.

So far, Democratic officials have not publicly commented on the push to move the convention, although it’s unlikely the party and the committee will be swayed to move the convention with only a few months left before delegates start arriving in Charlotte.

However, one of the left’s more prominent blogging websites, DailyKos.com, has published a letter calling for the convention to be moved.

“If the Democrats wish to hold itself out as the party of equality and equal protection under the law, the party that opposes discrimination of any kind, the party that truly fights for all families -- straight, gay, married, unmarried -- if they really want to be the party of progress, then they need to hold the Democratic National Convention in a state that reflects these values,” the author wrote.

“North Carolina should not reap economic benefits while shunning and excluding certain (groups) of its citizens from equality and human decency,” she continued.

After the amendment passed, President Barack Obama issued a statement saying he was “disappointed in the passage of this amendment.”

Before Tuesday night’s vote, he had formally opposed Amendment One, but did not campaign against it.

Obama sat down with ABC News for an interview Wednesday afternoon, during which he said he believes the same-sex couples should have the right to get married.

WSOC