If you haven’t read this Chron editorial arguing against Proposition 2, a/k/a the Double Secret Anti-Gay Marriage Amendment, please do so now. One point to highlight:
Contrary to the giddy pictures in the press, same-sex marriage is not primarily about a ritual. Marriage — and to a lesser extent civil union — confers precious protections for two adults and the children they raise as a family. With one marriage vow, a heterosexual American gains more than 1,000 federal protections. The list makes numbing reading, but each item clarifies couples’ rights and responsibilities.
Marriage legally requires a spouse to arrange a partner’s funeral. It requires a surviving spouse to raise the couple’s children. Same-sex couples who have been together for decades and are raising children are denied both the legal duties and protections that married couples take for granted. Same-sex couples can pay for contracts ensuring rights such as child custody, hospital visitation and power of attorney, but blood relatives can and do successfully contest such agreements.
[…]
Impeding protections for relationships that are even “identical or similar to marriage” is a crude assault on an existing truth. Throughout the state, same-sex couples are thriving, raising children, volunteering in the community and supporting each other financially. Withholding protections for these family units cruelly jeopardizes their ability to take care of themselves and their children.
As someone said to me recently, while gay couples can and do hire lawyers to write all these contracts for them to protect rights that married couples get automatically, it costs them a boatload of money to do so. Those that can’t afford that expense have to take the chance that should one of these issues ever arise, they won’t be shut out by their partners’ families. That’s a battle for another day, but as I wrote before, that debate will never happen if this law gets passed. If Prop 2 becomes a part of our state’s Constitution, even the unfairly expensive option for protecting one’s rights will be mooted.
This amendment is bad on many levels. It deserves to die. Vote No on Proposition 2 in November.
(Thanks to Greg for the link.)
Yes, it does deserve to die. Even my conservative, Republican, Ann Coulter-loving brother has said that he will vote against this amendment. He says that the amendment does not protect anyone – it only makes sure that his gay sister (me) will have to worry about whether her family will be protected in the times we will need it the most. He has also gathered the promises of all his conservative friends to vote against it as well. They all know me and can’t figure out why marriage needs to be “protected” from me. In my brother’s words, marriage needs to be protected from the bigoted jackasses who wrote this amendment in the first place. Actually, my brother’s words were not so kind.
As a hispanic lesbian here in El Paso, Texas I am proud to say I have been with my woman 7 years and our union is a lot stronger than most heterosexuals. The Lord has blessed us year after year with much happiness and strength to face biggots and idiots like the homophobics which feel “threatened” by our love. I laugh at this and think of how much hatred there is in their hearts and how much clean love is in ours. God Bless all!!!