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Human Rights Commission Minutes October 17, 2012 — Draft Minutes Page 7 of 9 274 in reviewing discrimination claims with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights. He 275 discussed the process in further detail. 276 277 Commissioner Lindsey commented he also works with good faith efforts for the State, in 278 addition to education outreach and partnerships between �� human rights commissions and 279 community groups. He saw a need to discuss complex issues by the public as this would assist 280 in bringing about resolution. He reviewed the Minnesota Human Rights Act with regard to the 281 proposed amendments regarding Voter ID's and the Marriage Amendinent. He noted the act 282 protected against discrimination in order to have a vibrant democracy. 283 284 Commissioner Lindsey stated education was necessary on these difficult issues. For this reason, 285 he felt compelled to address any issues that could cause discrimination. He discussed the 286 proposed marriage amendment and how it was being considered in terms of religious beliefs. He 287 explained in detail how the State would be affected if the amendment were passed and if it failed. 288 He did not support government getting involved in the definition of marriage based on religious 289 terms. He recommended that churches, mosques and synagogues be allowed to define who can 290 and cannot be married. He suggested the State keep a the separation from t� Church in this 291 matter. Commissioner Lindsey commented the government should not withhold 292 basic rights to certain groups. 293 294 Commissioner Lindsey then addressed the Voter ID�Amendment.. He provided �� 295 back_rg ound on his involvement in the Franken-Coleman recount. He then discussed the matter in 296 further detail stating there was a problem, as he saw it, in withholding a civic right, the right to 297 vote, from those who had committed a crime. He also stated 215,000 Minnesota residents do not 298 have a photo ID. He commented the amendment would affect those in the military serving 299 oversees, the elderly, in addition to those voting by absentee. He indicated as a democracy, 300 everyone has the right to vote and the cost to implement a change would be approximately $80- 301 100 million. 302 303 Commissioner Thao discussed the difficulty she had in gaining a photo ID as she did not have a 304 valid birth certificate due to the fact she was born in a Thai refugee camp. She followed the 305 proper steps to become a U.S. citizen, took her test, but � it took her four years to receive a 306 valid Minnesota ID. 307 308 Youth Commissioner Dao questioned why the expense to implement the change was so great. 309 Commissioner Lindsey explained that some counties in Minnesota rely heavily on absentee 310 ballots-voting. The Voter ID amendment would require ��t��s chan�es in this area and 311 all polling places would have to be ADA certified. 312 313 Chair Grefenberg �questioned how a majority vote by the �najority � could be expected 314 to protect the rights of t� a minority. He indicated he did not have great faith in the residents of 315 Minnesota and how they would define Marriage. For this reason, a portion of the population 316 would feel rejected. He questioned how the Minnesota Department of Human Rights would 3l7 address this concern. 318