Proposition 8

Today is, for me, profoundly bittersweet: we have a new President whose victory I've wanted for some time, and tens of thousands of Californians have found out that their marriages might be invalidated. California's Proposition 8, which sought to overturn the California Supreme Court's recent ruling giving gay people the same marriage rights as straight people, passed by a relatively narrow margin. The passage of Proposition 8 marks the first time that voters have actually stripped gay people of marriage rights, as opposed to barring them from marrying in the first place -- which the good people of Arizona and Florida did yesterday.

I know several people whose marriages may ultimately be rendered null and void, and my heart goes out to them. It's depressing and frightening to be reminded that so many of your fellow citizens see you as unworthy of the everyday rights and responsibilities that they unthinkingly enjoy.

At the same time, I know that the world won't come to an end. My friends will all remain married in the most meaningful sense of the term; one of them told me this summer that he and his partner saw their wedding ceremony as merely formalizing the commitments they had actually made to each other thirteen years ago. Tens of thousands of other people will go on loving each other, raising their children, and generally living their lives even if their marriage licenses become mere pieces of paper. They'll also keep educating their friends and neighbors about the impact of Proposition 8 on their lives and families (thus generating all kinds of materials -- and prompting creation of all kinds of materials opposing same-sex marriage -- that likely warrant long-term preservation).

If you have to feel deeply sorry for anyone, think about the Arkansas children who may be denied the chance to live in loving homes because the voters just passed a measure barring unmarried couples from becoming foster or adoptive parents; proponents of this measure freely admitted that they were motivated chiefly by anti-gay sentiment.

Disheartening as these losses are, I have to believe that history is on our side. CNN's exit polls (hat tip to Box Turtle Bulletin by way of Andrew Sullivan) indicate that 61 percent of voters aged 18-29 opposed Proposition 8, which is consistent with other polls concerning attitudes toward same-sex marriage, and public policy generally trails public opinion. However, it's not just a matter of demographics. Freedom and equality will ultimately win out. It won't happen without sacrifice or struggle -- as countless abolitionists, suffragists, civil rights activists, feminists, and others would testify -- but it will happen. Within my parents' lifetimes, millions of African-Americans were deliberately and systematically denied the franchise. Last night, an African-American man became President Elect of this nation. The guy has his own has his own issues with same-sex marriage, but he casually and comfortably acknowledges our existence in a way that neither his opponent nor the current President ever has.

Just remember: as Andrew Sullivan points out (how on earth did I miss it?), an initiative that might have jeopardized marriage equality was on the ballot in Connecticut, which will allow same-sex marriage as of November 12. The voters deep-sixed it.

Today is . . .

I don't ordinarily use this blog to trumpet my views on politics and social policy, and I certainly don't plan to start doing so on a regular basis. However, every now and then, I feel compelled to have my say. How could I not join today's Write to Marry blog carnival -- organized by Mombian -- which has at the time of this writing been joined by over 300 bloggers?

Earlier this year, the California Supreme Court ruled that state laws barring same-sex couples from marrying were unconstitutional. Tens of thousands of Californians--and people from other states -- rushed to formalize their de facto marriages and to join the mainstream of American life. However, the court's decision also engendered opposition and led to the introduction of a ballot initiative, Proposition 8, that, if passed, will nullify the court's decision. Opponents of same-sex marriage have swamped the state with donations and volunteers, and supporters of marriage equality have thus found themselves outgunned and outspent.

I realize that my desire to see LGBT Americans enjoy the same rights and shoulder the same responsibilities as everyone else may not be shared by the archival profession as a whole. However, if you share my viewpoint, please contribute to No On 8, which sorely needs your support. You need not be a Californian in order to do so; however, if you do live in California, consider giving your time as well as your money to the cause! (And, of course, if you're an archivist, please do your part -- regardless of your own views -- to ensure that the documentary record fairly represents all sides of this tumultuous story.)

If you're uncertain about the whole same-sex marriage issue, please ponder the words of the late Mildred Loving. Mildred, an African-American, and her late husband Richard, a European-American, were arrested in their home state of Virginia shortly after they married in Washington, DC. They responded by suing, and in 1967 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Loving v. Virginia (was there ever a more aptly named ruling?) that laws barring interracial marriage were unconstitutional.

Mrs. Loving shunned the spotlight. She saw herself not as a political activist but as an ordinary woman who wished to marry the man she loved and to live quietly in the community in which they both grew up. However, in connection with the 40th anniversary of Loving v. Virginia, she spoke out about the ruling and same-sex marriage:

My generation was bitterly divided over something that should have been so clear and right. The majority believed that . . . it was God's plan to keep people apart, and that government should discriminate against people in love. But I have lived long enough now to see big changes. The older generation's fears and prejudices have given way, and today's young people realize that if someone loves someone they have a right to marry.

Surrounded as I am now by wonderful children and grandchildren, not a day goes by that I don't think of Richard and our love, our right to marry, and how much it meant to me to have that freedom to marry the person precious to me, even if others thought he was the "wrong kind of person" for me to marry. I believe all Americans, no matter their race, no matter their sex, no matter their sexual orientation, should have that same freedom to marry. Government has no business imposing some people’s religious beliefs over others. Especially if it denies people’s civil rights.

I am still not a political person, but I am proud that Richard's and my name is on a court case that can help reinforce the love, the commitment, the fairness, and the family that so many people, black or white, young or old, gay or straight seek in life. I support the freedom to marry for all. That's what Loving, and loving, are all about.UPDATE, 2008-10-30, 12:17 AM: I forgot to mention that two other states have "marriage protection" initiatives on the ballot. Arizona's Proposition 102 and Florida's Amendment 2 will, if passed, amend the constitutions of these states to bar same-sex marriages; the Florida amendment will likely put an end to domestic partner benefits for straight and gay couples. As is the case in California, the Arizonans and Floridians who oppose these amendments are short of troops and funds; if you're in a position to do so, please help out the good people at Arizona Together and Fairness for All Families.

If these amendments pass, their practical impact of these amendments will be different from that of California's Proposition 8 -- neither state currently recognizes same-sex marriages performed within its boundaries -- but their symbolic meaning is just as crushing.