Indiana: When public politics become personal

Chris Smith via his Facebook page

Openly gay Chris Smith, son of state Rep. Milo Smith who chairs Indiana’s House Elections and Apportionment Committee, shared his feelings about his father advancing an anti-gay marriage bill on the Facebook page of the LGBT advocacy group Indiana Equality this past Saturday, days after his father’s committee passed the ban.

“I’m not here to badmouth my dad,” he wrote. “I’m terribly disappointed in his decision and beliefs, but he’s not going to change them now if he hasn’t after all these years of knowing I am gay. I am here to support you and my friends who remain in Indiana. They are my extended family.”