What a shocking disappointment. The numbers look too far gone. California has decided to actually change the state constitution to ban gay marriage. Shouldn’t we be focusing on more important things?
Florida and Arizona also voted to ban same sex marriage, and the state of Arkansas voted to stop homosexuals from adopting children.
Update, 11/5/08: The same sex marriages that have already been established in the state of California will most likely still be valid and legal because they took place during a time in which they were legal.
But, a San Francisco Attorney plans to take the case to the state Supreme Court in hopes of overturning the decision as unconsitutional.
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Yes, we should be focusing on more important issues. We have no right to deny two people the right to declare their love for each other.
Dan, Sheba, I agree; this was a big disappointment. But this is the way we make progress–two steps forward and one step back. What’s important now is to continue to speak openly about tolerance and acceptance to anyone who will listen. Change is coming, change is coming. Now let’s look toward putting a woman in the White House in 2016!!
P.S. CafePress has “Yes We Did” t-shirts and sweatshirts!!
Do the people who are already married keep their licenses? And they New York state senate has gone blue, so they will be allowing it soon. NY= New California.
It is probably safe to say that the people already married retain their marital status under the law, as courts are generally reluctant to apply new laws retroactively. As a rule of thumb, if people have taken action based on a current law, the courts don’t later tell them, ‘Sorry, that’s illegal now–you should have seen this coming in the future….’ It looks like this will be the case with those already married (which pleases me, as I had friends, lifetime CA residents, who married four months ago; they’ve been partners for 20 years). Our CA Attorney General will need to make a decision… but he’s a pretty cool guy!
I can’t believe that 8 passed. I assumed the hate would pass in Florida and Arizona, but California?!? THAT was a shock.
Well, I hope you all realize that Obama is opposed to gay marriage; he supports only civil unions. That seems to me to be the vote that Californians were making, in agreement with the presidential candidate that they overwhelmingly voted for. It is surprising and disappointing that Proposition 8 was passed, but I should not say that it is shocking, because it is in agreement with the mainstream view of the Democratic Party on gay marriage. (I disagree, thinking that it is unconstitutional to discriminate and not allow this group to have the exact same rights, in pursuance of happiness, as heterosexual people. Civil unions make LGBT people equal in the eyes of the law, but only outright marriage can make them truly equal in the eyes of our society; and that is the only equality, it seems to me, that really matters.)
I believe marriage should be decided by the individual not by the government. They should keep out. A LIBERTARIAN BELIEF.
What Obama believes in his heart of hearts and what he must say to satisfy his constituents may be two different things. I know that Obama will be a great leader of our country at a time when we desperately need leadership. I also believe that Prop 8, shoved, pushed, manipulated and ramrodded into being by Christian fundamentalists and the Mormon church (two distinct entities, let me assure you), is a violation of civil rights. When John F. Kennedy was running for president, he was asked constantly what he would do about the ‘negro problem’ if elected president. Sound shocking? Yet, in 1962, it sounded like a valid question–just as Barack having to formulate his stance on gay marriage will sound unimaginable a few decades from now. We’ve come a long, long way since my days in high school when I could not tell my friends at church about my gay friends for fear of being “disfellowshipped.” Yes, we have a long way to go.
Today, Melissa Etheridge (love her music, love her) stated in a blog that if the state carries through with amending its constitution, she would stop paying her taxes, since she is not really considered a valid citizen of the state. This is the type of protest–and the demonstrations we’ve been seeing in WeHo–that might need to come from the LGBT contingency and its supporters before folks are forced to see that THE INSTITUTION OF MARRIAGE IS NOT EXCLUSIVE TO CERTAIN CHURCHES. (Sorry for shouting; this is a close-to-home issue for me.)
stop trying to change constitution of marriage to accomodate your personal choice.
if you wanna be with same sex , fine, I’ll defend your right to do what suits you.
but don’t you dare come nocking on may door forcing me and my child to accept your choice as NORMAL.
it is not.
Marriage is between one man and one woman, other than that call it whatever you like but it is not Mariage.
leave a normal married couple on and island (man and woman of course) and come after 50 years you will see kids and families.
leave a same sex couples on an island for 100 years and you will only get rotten bones.
still respect your choice for yourself but don’t force it on me and my family.
Jim.
All the GLBT community wants is to get equal rights under the law. Prop 8 makes them second class citizens. You must have been watching YES on prop 8 commericals. Its a lie.
For Jim…
Thank you for your courage in sharing your empassioned thoughts.
I’m not sure what your point is with the ’same sex couples on an island’ comment. There are many variations and permutations to that: Put a man and a woman on an island when one of them is physiologically incapable of reproducing and you’ll still get your “rotten bones.” Should we disallow infertile couples to marry? Should couples undergo medical tests before they marry to make sure they can produce children? If a man is disabled while he is serving his country in the military and he is rendered incapable of reproduction, should we deny him the right to marry? Should couples sign affidavits when they marry, promising to produce children? Of course not. Couples marry because they desire to make a public statement regarding a private commitment they’ve made to each other. And couples come in all shapes, sizes, colors and orientations. Excluding a segment of society because they are not perceived as “normal” requires us to somehow define what a ‘normal couple’ would be. Seems an impossible task, if you ask me.