civil rights. human rights. inalienable rights. it’s what this great country was founded on, well, that and the graves of the natives we slaughtered so we’d have plenty of room to enjoy life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. hey, our creator endowed us. US. not them.
it’s human nature to want human rights, and it is also human nature to deny those rights to other humans. how do those who struggle against the rights of others manage to reconcile this in their minds? not just a few stray assholes, mind you. we’re talking a massive coalition of churches pooling their considerable resources have their opinions written into the rule of law. “So far, Proposition 8 supporters have poured $19,778,208 to outlaw same-sex marriage, about $1.6 million more than opponents of the measure. Add the two sides together and that’s about $38 million. Imagine the good it could be doing elsewhere.”
so much good that could be done, but instead it’s just the same old evil, the latest in a long history of religious persecutors, fighting these battles along the increasingly blurry line between church and state, bleating about the need to protect the institution of marriage against the ‘wrong people’ getting into it. they do this in the same spirit we used to enforce similar protections against people of color sharing schools, bathrooms, and water fountains, insisting they were ‘separate but equal’. “California law already grants domestic partners all the rights that a state can grant to a married couple. Gays have a right to their private lives, but not to change the definition of marriage for everyone else.” i thought we covered the whole “separate is inherently unequal” thing way back in Brown v. Board of education, but perhaps not.
marriage can hardly be called a privilege. it’s as much a right as anything else that we’re entitled to do once we reach a certain age. you don’t have to pass a written exam or a road test, you simply present yourself at the courthouse with proper ID, a pulse, and $45, and they’ll issue you a license to wed. hell, death row inmates are allowed to marry, and they are considered property of the state — they don’t even have the right to their own lives, but they can be married in the eyes of god and the government.
my anger (and there is quite a lot of it) stems from the unimaginable arrogance inherent in excluding any minority from anything based solely on their status as a member of that minority. the religious reich, citing the bible, channeling mein kampf. not that i’m making comparisons between our modern godly persecutors and nazi germany! oh hell no! hitler had lousy P.R. people. ‘family values’ would have been a much more effective tagline than ‘master race’. ok, ok, calm down, i am not comparing discrimination to genocide. they are completely different things. totally unrelated. nothing to do with one another. except, you know, the hate. it takes a powerful amount of hate to operate under the set of presumptions necessary to conceive of, and campaign for, something as devastating as Prop 8. these people have nothing personal to be protected against, and no reason other than this hate to fight against the rights of others (it’s not like the law is trying to force churches to perform gay marriages, that’s actually quite unnecessary — there are plenty of churches that will willingly and joyfully officiate over these vows).
the truth is that there are many, many good christians who oppose Prop. 8. there are even organized religious groups who have spoken out against Prop 8. in fact, i feel ridiculously grateful to any and all who have taken a stand against this abomination against humanity and enlightenment and love, because historically, any time a determined group of individuals has dedicated itself to systematically denying the rights of another group of people, it’s been a hell of a fight to set things right.
even if you don’t live in california, you can still speak out against this. the struggle for civil rights affects us all. even if you don’t believe in gay marriage, you can still speak out against this, because it is not about gayness, or really even about marriage — it’s about rights.
I couldn’t agree with you more. It’s unconscionable that we’re actually drafting language to amend a constitution (a document intended to guarantee citizen rights) to deny rights to a certain population. The validity or strength of my marriage, which happens to be a heterosexual one, is by no means threatened by two people of the same gender being able to join in a loving covenant, express the permanence and persistence of their love, and have that bond recognized with all of the legal and social rights therein.
Fear and Parenting in Las Vegas´s last blog post..Yep. I’m All About Bette
Nice piece! You are a very passionate writer. I really hope and pray that prop 8 doesn’t pass, but I’m preparing myself for the worse.
I think there has been a great surge in the popularity of what I call “cultural christianity.” Cultural christianity is really just cultural values labeled as christianity to lend it more validity, but it has little in common with what true Christianity is supposed to be about. True Christianity is the following of Jesus Christ, a man who loved all people (yes, even the gay ones!) and died so that we could be spared.
I think cultural christians feel like they have to pick a fight in order to prove how awesome and righteous they are, but often times they haven’t even studied the bible or the teachings of Christ. At the end of the day, this issue has very little to do with God and everything to do with culture. Jesus didn’t even talk about homosexuality; trust me, I’ve scoured the bible for that specific thing. On the other hand, there are so many things Jesus did expressly say were wrong that aren’t illegal (adultery, greed, lying) so why are people in such a snit about gay marriage? Because it grosses them out, they just don’t want to admit it.
Someday gay marriage will be permanently legal, I just hope I live to see it.
Julie´s last blog post..NO on Prop 8
i am so glad i know the both of you, it’s very comforting after researching this post and hearing so many people saying so many ugly things.
i hope good will prevail in this. i really, really do.
[...] with for the last two years. In case you missed it, DotLizard drafted a very articulate post about her position against California’s proposition 8 – the anti gay marriage amendment to California’s constitution. I was pleased to be one of [...]
Thank you so much for taking the time to write this. I was moved to tears, actually.
Prop 8 will be a groundbreaking moment if it does pass. Americans have spent decades taking discrimination out of the Constitution… Abolition of Slavery, Womens Suffrage, Protecting Children… Yet, for the first time we may be writing it INTO the Constitution. AND in California… one of the most Liberal states in the country.
Being a young gay man, I have always dreamed of someday getting married. And now my concern is living long enough to see that day happen. Being a young HIV+ Gay man… I sure hope that will happen.
One of the fundamental rights that is most important that comes out of a Marriage… being able to have your spouse with you when you die. Right now, if I were in a hospital, my partner (if I had one) would not be allowed into the room… or be able to make important decisions for me. Not fair.
Anyway, I am doing my part to educate and spread the word. Please Vote No on Prop 8… Everyone deserves Happily Ever After.
ImYourBoyJ´s last blog post..+
Thank you. You just made my point.
This is EXACTLY why I shunned rss feeds in the begining. I am not saying I did not TRUST them, I’d just rather go see for myself via internet surf whether or not they updated.
I rss’d you. No updates in-quite-a-while
Then I blog about your greatness (in progress)
and have to direct link so I surf on for correct linkage
And I sit here giggling madly cursing the damn RSS.
You have been playing. Oh.Yes.You.Have.
I am soo sorry I am just now chiming in.
And I wish I lived in CA like you
So I could vote NO on Prop 8
Loved you long time, gal.
Keep rockin.
CitizenX´s last blog post..All tech update.. finally !!! (I know)
Where did you find the lizard with a brew?
I like em
Your new rss is fubar like mine.
It is always fubar in IE (who cares really)
but occasionally in FF .. like yours this morning.
Will keep trying to get this RSS but I know better now.
CitizenX´s last blog post..wazzup+tech=sexy
the lizard is from http://www.stockxpert.com/ — they have the most awesome stock images, prices starting with a buck. the lizard, he was a buck. all the critters on http://pobo.me were also from there – and also a buck. search for ‘illustrations’ and whatever you’re looking for and there are some very awesome artists. now let’s see if the links are converted when i submit this!