Elon Law professors Michael Rich, Sonya Garza and Andy Haile published an op-ed article in the Sunday, Sept. 25 edition of the News & Record arguing that, "our Constitution is not a place for provisions that marginalize minorities or restrict liberties."
Rich, Garza and Haile are criminal law, family law, and tax law experts respectively. In their News & Record op-ed, they cite John J. Parker, a Monroe, North Carolina native and federal judge for his explanation that “the primary purpose of a state constitution is to protect the rights of individuals against encroachment from the state.”
The op-ed also states:
“Since the current version of the Constitution was enacted in 1971 and before this year, the General Assembly has proposed twenty-eight amendments. Consistent with the Constitution’s stated purpose of protecting the freedom of the people from state intrusion, each of these either established new rights for North Carolina residents or modified the structure of government. None restricted the liberty of citizens … The legislature now asks the people to do the unprecedented: to place a restriction on freedom in our Constitution. But our Constitution… is not a battlefield for waging culture wars. If passed, this amendment will be a source of shame for the people of North Carolina and a direct contradiction to its founding principles. The people of North Carolina should take a stand against the offensive notion that discrimination against a minority is worthy of inclusion in the North Carolina Constitution.”