The defeat of California's Proposition 8, which effectively eliminates the rights of gays and lesbians to marry, was one of the most dreadful events to result from this year's election season - especially in a state that purports to be progressive and which voted against John McCain. Thankfully, those couples married prior to November will not have their unions annulled or invalidated in any way, according to Jerry Brown. But the message sent was loud and clear: California voted for hate and the introduction of discrimination into law. Members of the GLBT society know now that, at least in California, they are not citizens of equal rights. Interestingly, Connecticut just voted in favor of gay marriages, showing that the Left Coast may not be as innovative or accepting as its advertising would like us to believe.
The most poignant commentary on the success of this measure - and there were many - came from Joe Solomnese, president of Human Rights Campaign.
The Mormon and Roman Catholic Churches played a huge role in the travesty called Proposition 8, forcing me to question whether members of those communities have forgotten the lessons of their own struggles against persecution. It is chilling to realize that the Catholic and Mormon Churches knew they were telling lies – that marriage equality would require children to learn about homosexuality in school, that priests would be required to solemnize marriages of same-sex couples – and they lied anyway.
He also quoted Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who famously asked, "Will we be extremists for hate or will we be extremists for love?" It would appear that in California, love has lost.
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