Yup, Still Thinking About Those Civil Rights

Getting settled in Los Angeles, and proper updates are on the way, but I did want to post what I feel is a very eloquent dissection of civil unions vs marriage.



And while we're at it, the amazing "Prop 8 The Musical". Is it possible to like Neil Patrick Harris even more than we already do? (Dr. Horrible, anyone?)

See more Jack Black videos at Funny or Die

Join The Impact Seattle

Today was the national Join The Impact protest, and out here in Seattle, announced today, it is officially "Marriage Equality Day". Every November 15, per Mayor Greg Nickels speaking at today's rally, we will celebrate the right of all people, regardless of color, gender, orientation, or faith to be married. Good on you, Mayor Nickels; it doesn't change my position on your liberalization of zoning laws (in a way that is, to my mind, anti preservation), but I'm touched that Seattle's gay community has your support.

The rally was, in truth, inspiring. It was heartwarming to me to see a gathering of people from across the spectrum of Seattle's citizenry; especially older straight couples and (gay and straight) families with their children. Especially inspiring was the knowledge that, moving forward, things will be different, and to borrow a line from the fight for African American rights, yes, "we will overcome".

See the full gallery here.

Keith Olbermann Has Something To Say

MSNBC shouting talking head Keith Olbermann addressed the topic of gay marriage and Proposition 8. Definitely worth watching and forwarding. A good perspective on an issue that is, yes (sigh) about equal rights, and not special rights. (For the record, I love him; he may be our Bill O'Reilly, but he possesses a humanity and an intellectualism that is otherwise largely absent in punditry.)



(Update: This totally makes me teary eyed every time I watch it; let us all be written in the Book Of Love.)

Downloadable Protest Posters!

The folks over at Against8 have some great downloadable posters to use tomorrow for the march; download them and march, march, march for equal rights!!

Join The Impact Saturday!

"All, too, will bear in mind this sacred principle, that though the will of the majority is in all cases to prevail, that will to be rightful must be reasonable; that the minority possess their equal rights, which equal law must protect, and to violate would be oppression."
-Thomas Jefferson-

This Saturday, people across the nation, and in every state, will meet and march to our city halls to demand equality, and show that we will not be silent as our rights are stripped away through legislation. Find information on your city here, and please join us, regardless of sexual orientation, nationality, faith, gender, or age. Let's take hold of the opportunity to truly be one united voice asking that we honor the spirit and the principles that our country was founded upon.

Shut Up, Elton John.

Oh, Elton John, you silly vapid, selfish queen, you. How nice, Sir Elton, that you have blessed us with making your home in Los Angeles and taking the time to pontificate on our quaint political processes. Via USA Today (the favored rag of the business traveler and the third rate motel), Sir Elton made clear his views on exactly why the opposition to Proposition 8 failed.

"We're not married. Let's get that right. We have a civil partnership. What is wrong with Proposition 8 is that they went for marriage. Marriage is going to put a lot of people off, the word marriage."

"I don't want to be married. I'm very happy with a civil partnership. If gay people want to get married, or get together, they should have a civil partnership," said John. "The word marriage, I think, puts a lot of people off. You get the same equal rights that we do when we have a civil partnership. Heterosexual people get married. We can have civil partnerships."

The thing is, Sir Elton? We already had marriage. It was there in the California Constitution (it's like a Yankee Magna Carta, dear), the state supreme court affirmed that it was there, and then it was taken away by bigots wielding fear and lies. No one "went for marriage"; this was thrust on us, and we stood up to protect the rights that we already had protected under the Constitution, and they were taken away. Similar to how in Arkansas they took away the rights of unmarried people to foster and adopt children; something that we also would not be allowed under a "civil partnership".

So please, take your hair plugs, your collection of novelty eyewear, your hideous Oscar party, and yes, even your "Tiny Dancer" and fuck right off back across the pond. P.s. Love the outfit; though doesn't it seem a bit tasteful for you?

photo via Andy Kropa AP

Circulate the Proposition 8 Repeal Petition!!!

Well, the amount of time spent patting ourselves on the back over the election results was short lived -- for me at least, and many others that I know. California passed (by a slim margin, but certainly a large enough margin to cause concern) Proposition 8, the amendment to the state's constitution revoking marriage rights for gays and lesbians. As disheartening as it is, opponents of the ban are refusing to concede defeat, and there are already multiple lawsuits working their way into the court system. At issue is the fact that the ballot initiative is discriminatory, and unfairly targets a portion of the population, and violates the equal protection clause that it seeks to amend.

Additionally, there is a petition that I urge everyone to circulate, but please know, you are only able to sign if you are a California resident, age 18 or older. If you are not, please do not sign it, but do what you can to make people who are eligible aware. The petition is an entreaty to Governor Schwarsenegger to overturn the ballot measure, and currently has, at last count has over 113,000 signatures. Please, make your voice heard! We changed history once this week, let's do it again. (Update: While writing this, I was able to see the number of signatures go up by over 2000 s in the span of a few minutes. Inspiring!)

Can't sign? Circulate this link.

Below, the full text:

To: California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
I, myself, and many Californians I know are disgusted with the hatred that the passing of proposition 8 brought. I am asking you to read this over, THE FACTS, not the propaganda. Open your mind for a minute, and realize that this is terrible for future generations as well. How do you know that your future children or grandchildren won't come to you and tell you they are homosexual? Wouldn't you want your child to live a life in which the love they found was supported? Plain and simple, if you are an American, you should believe in preserving the constitution. Proposition 8's passing took away the 14th amendment for a group of people, and I would like to give it back.

Facts v. Fiction
Proposition 8 would eliminate fundamental rights for a group of Californians. It’s unfair and it’s wrong.

Fiction: Prop 8 doesn’t discriminate against gay people.
Fact: Prop 8 is simple: it eliminates the rights for same-sex couples to marry. Prop 8 would deny equal protections and write discrimination against one group of people—lesbian and gay people—into our state constitution.

Fiction: Teaching children about same-sex marriage will happen here unless we pass Prop 8.
Fact: Not one word in Prop 8 mentions education. And no child can be forced, against the will of their parents, to be taught anything about health and family issues at school. California law prohibits it.
California’s top educators including Superintendent of Schools Jack O’Connell and California Teachers all agree: Prop 8 has nothing to do with education.

Fiction: Churches could lose their tax-exemption status.
Fact: The court decision regarding marriage specifically says “no religion will be required to change its religious policies or practices with regard to same-sex couples, and no religious officiant will be required to solemnize a marriage in contravention of his or her religious beliefs.”

Fiction: A Massachusetts case about a parent’s objection to the school curriculum will happen here.
Fact: California gives parents an absolute right to remove their kids and opt-out of teaching on health and family instruction they don’t agree with. The opponents know that California law already covers this and Prop 8 won’t affect it, so they bring up an irrelevant case in Massachusetts.

Fiction: Four Activist Judges in San Francisco…
Fact: Prop 8 is about eliminating a fundamental right. Judges didn’t grant the right, the constitution guarantees the right. Proponents of Prop 8 use an outdated and stale argument that judges aren’t supposed to protect rights and freedoms. Prop 8 is about whether Californians are willing to amend the constitution for the sole purpose of eliminating a fundamental right for one group of citizens.

Fiction: If Prop 8 isn’t passed, people can be sued over personal beliefs.
Fact: California’s laws already prohibit discrimination against anyone based on race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation. This has nothing to do with marriage.

Fiction: Pepperdine University supports the Yes on 8 campaign.
Fact: The University has publicly disassociated itself from Professor Richard Peterson of Pepperdine University, who is featured in the ad, and has asked to not be identified in the Yes on 8 advertisements.

Fiction: Unless Prop 8 passes, California parents won’t have the right to object to what their children are taught in school.
Fact: California law clearly gives parents and guardians broad authority to remove their children from any health instruction if it conflicts with their religious beliefs or moral convictions.

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

Write To Marry Day

Today is Write To Marry Day, a day where bloggers are posting their pleas for the defeat of proposition 8 in California. I've been incredibly busy, and, sadly, have not had a chance to say (yet) as much as I would like to on this topic. Following is a post that I had begun some time ago, but had to put down due to time. So, in honor of the occasion, I've spiffed it up a bit and hopefully it will suffice; also appended are some fantastic "No On 8" youtube spots, which are clever and wonderful (and hello, gay speakeasies!), but also make some brilliant points.

If you are unable to vote "no" on 8, please, please, please donate here. The campaign needs to raise another $3 million in the days leading up to the election to compete with the influx of money going into the pro 8 camp. This is a matter of massive historic significance, so please, please, do whatever you can to help -- whether it's donating, voting, or educating. There is a tremendous amount that we take for granted with little or no thought to those who fought before us; this is our chance to make them proud.

Recently on Towleroad, I happened across an incredibly well thought out and impassioned argument regarding the important and historic nature of Proposition 8, how it's all about civil rights and not marriage, and exactly why it's imperative that it not pass. I touched on this issue somewhat myself in my post from 10/12, though my arguments focused on drawing a parallel between gay marriage and interracial marriage. What my argument lacked, and what Prince Gomolvilas tackled (and tackled well) is the human factor.

In short, this issue is about civil rights. It is about me. It is about you. It is about your children, your grandchildren, your nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles, and parents. It is not about religion. It is not about "tolerance". It's about changing the world for the better and taking one more step in ensuring that every citizen of this country shares the same set of rights. And it's not unreasonable. Below is a particularly poignant excerpt from the article.

There are people out there who want to change the law to designate an entire class of people as unequal to, as less than, every other class of people. If we lose this battle, I don't care that we're losing marriage; I care that you and I will, in the eyes of the law, be inferior to everyone else. And when our opponents see that our inferiority is validated by the government, it will allow them to continue on their path of dehumanizing us. That's what denying a class of people an equal right does. It dehumanizes them. And it is the dehumanization of a group that creates a culture in which people feel that it is okay to yell "fag" at me when I'm walking down the street; that it is okay for kids to be bullied and beaten at school; that it is okay for a jeering mob to incite a gay 17-year-old to commit suicide by jumping off a building. These things happen because gays are demonized. And gays are demonized when they're made out to be an inferior class of people. And they are made out to be an inferior class of people when they are not allowed the same rights as everyone else.

Matthew Shepard Ten Years Later And The Fight For Marriage Equality

Today marks the 10th anniversary of the death of Matthew Shepard, the 21 year old University of Wyoming student who was brutally beaten and left for dead in a field because he was gay. (The initial motive was likely robbery, however, the long and the short of it is that Matt Shepard was beaten, pistol whipped, and tied to a fence post by people who ultimately decided to brutalize him based on his sexuality.)

In the past ten years, admittedly, a lot has changed. As of this past Friday, Connecticut became the third state to legalize gay marriage at the judicial level, reasoning eloquently that “Interpreting our state constitutional provisions in accordance with firmly established equal protection principles leads inevitably to the conclusion that gay persons are entitled to marry the otherwise qualified same-sex partner of their choice." Still though, as the fight for equal rights (yes, equal, not "special") is advancing, we are still experiencing set backs, as states pass amendments to their state constitutions declaring that marriage is to be defined as "between a man and a woman". During the 2004 election cycle, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Ohio, Utah and Oregon have passed amendments to their constitutions doing just this, and this year Arizona, California, and Florida have measures on the November ballot to do the same.

It is important that voters in these three districts stand up and fight for equality, but it is of utmost importance that the marriage ban in California, Proposition 8, not pass. Currently California allows gay couples to marry after the recent Supreme Court decision, so a constitutional amendment would be a massive set back for marriage equality. The rights afforded to same sex couples through marriage are essential to legitimizing relationships, and extend much further than any proposed domestic partnership legislation ever could. Without marriage rights, same sex couples lack visitation rights for hospital stays, are exempt from tax protected inheritance rights, and are disallowed equitable ownership of property. (The last alludes to the manner in which a married couple may hold title to a property, as contrasted to two unrelated persons, and the subsequent tax liability when ownership in the property is transferred or dissolved.)

It is preposterous to imagine that we can somehow legitimize one consenting couple's committed relationship while delegitimizing another, and justifying this requires a baffling amount of logical acrobatics. It wasn't so long ago that the same arguments were made in favor of disallowing mixed race marriages, and the same arguments made in favor of prohibiting miscegenation fell when confronted with basic and inalienable human rights. The conceit that the will of the majority can restrict the rights of a minority is wrong headed and purely unConstitutional.

It's not possible to stress the importance of, if you are in California, being sure that you vote, and vote "no" on Prop 8; if you're not in California, it's still possible to affect change by donating to the cause here. This is an historic time in American politics, on all fronts, and I can only hope that when we look back in the next ten years, we have accomplishments for which we can be proud, as a people, and as an equal, unified nation.