CONTINUING FIGHT

11/23/08

If you thought Proposition 8 was going to go quietly into the night, you should probably reconsider. Some in the Hollywood community ponder their next move, others are actively seeking revenge. The L A Times reports that some jobs have already been lost. Cooler heads are trying to prevail, but at the moment it is impossible to predict the outcome.

Proponents of the proposition seem to have forgotten that in the descriptive phrase, "gay Americans," the operative word is Americans. All Americans, gay or straight, are entitled to the same rights and privileges. Denying any group the right to marry denies them an equal place at the table. Such denials, whether they express the “will of the people” or the will of a single religeous organization, run counter to the principles of a free society and have been struck down in the past by the California Supreme Court. It is my understanding that as a result of prop. 8, the court has agreed to consider the question again.

Years ago, a group of NAZIs wanted to march in Skokie, IL, a suburb of Chicago with a large Jewish population. As I recall, their right to do so was defended in court by the ACLU. The issue then was free speech, the freedom of one group to express its hatred for another. The issue now is the effort of one group to restrict the activities of another. That is a whole different animal.

Contributing money to a political cause like prop. 8 does not come with the same assurance of privacy as casting a vote. In the case of the former, you are aiding a movement that alters the lives of others, and regardless of your intentions you should realize that there may well be consequences. That being said, I hope everyone involved will take a deep breath and seek the best results for themselves, rather than the worst results for others.