Losing California

The Volokh Conspiracy by Dale Carpenter | Nov. 5, 2008 (Opinion)

Mostly, my heart breaks for the gay couples and their children who had a five-month window in which their families could celebrate the ultimate expression of commitment and love our culture knows. There was nothing academic about any of this for them....They want their families and communities to understand how much their relationships mean and how fiercely they will fight to protect the children they love....Today, they have no idea whether they have just ... Full Story »

Posted by Beth Wellington

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4.3

by Beth Wellington - Nov. 7, 2008

The author, a U of M civil rights professor, combines heart and fact in an effective way. He also links to a legal discussion by his co-blogger, which I've included as a related link.

For those who advocate civil union or domestic partnerships for gays and lesbians, the precedent that "separate is inherently unequal" would require states to sanction marriage for no one or anyone. In the former case, the marriage would be left religion. Politically, though, current lack of support in the general public means that insistence on marriage, rather than domestic partnership, may be a case of the perfect being the enemy of the good. Familiarity breeds comfort, not ... More »

Beth posted this story.

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3.5

by Dan Kennedy - Nov. 6, 2008

A personal essay on the passage of California's anti-gay-marriage ballot measure, and thus lacking in some news details that might be helpful to understanding what happened. Still, there is a lot of quirky insight here, and is well worth reading by anyone who wants to know why Californians embraced discrimination against their fellow citizens.

I am deeply in favor of same-sex marriage as a matter of personal belief, of relationships with other people, and of religious conviction. I live in Boston. After the election, I called one of my best friends, a lesbian who is married to her partner thanks to the Massachusetts constitution. She was delighted with Obama's victory and said, "I almost feel like I'm part of this country now." Yes, almost.

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4.1

by Kaizar Campwala - Nov. 5, 2008

An honest, sober analysis of the passage of Prop 8. Great read.

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4.1

by Denise Clendening - Nov. 7, 2008

Thoughtful and well-reasoned article discussing the recent passage of Prop 8 in California. There was no discussion in the article on the support from the California Democratic Party for the No on 8 campaign nor how the Yes on 8 campaign claimed that Obama supported Yes on 8.

Many California's joy of having Obama win was dampened by the passage of Prop 8. At a rally I attended an elementary school teacher had a sign that resonated that said 'Popular bigotry is still bigotry '. That No on 8 rally was taken over by zealots on the other side who claimed they were protecting children and had no idea that the Yes on 8 proposition was being funded by the LDS. After reading Glenn Greenwald's article on the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and ... More »

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4.3

by Chris Finnie - Nov. 7, 2008

It is sad to have come so far that we could elect a mixed-race president, only to perpetuate the same sort of bigotry people of color have suffered for so long on yet another group of people. I didn't know until recently that Asians and Latinos, as well as blacks, were not allowed to marry whites in many states--as recently as when I was born. To me, this whole issue so violates our constitutional separation of church and state and legislates based on religious values. As the comments show, our tax laws are based on the same morality-based views.

I recently heard a woman call in to a radio talk show about this and say with shaking voice that only people who could procreate should be able to marry. I couldn't for years after my only son was born--despite trying with his father and my second husband as well. Does that mean my first marriage was only valid while I was fertile? Or that my second never was? Or now that I'm too old to breed I should never be allowed another try? (Given my track record, that might be a good idea. ... More »

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3.7

by Dwight Rousu - Nov. 7, 2008

The article presents some information and quite a bit of feeling from an opponent of Prop 8. Long term optimism is expressed.

I have heard on radio discussions that low information voters bought into the negative advertising presented by the supporters of Prop 8, suggesting it would force sex education on young children. Many voters voted yes, but did not oppose gay marriages.

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