First of all, the successful Maine vote to repeal gay marriage (by 52 1/2% to 47 1/2%) has now apparently emboldened anti-gay marriage activists in New Hampshire -- where gay marriages are slated to begin on January 1, 2010 -- to take their fight to the ballot box.
As Ben Smith reports at Politico:
Reconsidering marriage in New Hampshire
The defeat of same-sex marriage in Maine is prompting marriage foes in New Hampshire -- which now has same-sex marriage -- to try again:
David Mixner wrote a rabble-rousing column today, in part:
What is happening to us with this expanding system of Gay Apartheid in America cannot be allowed to continue and if it does, we cannot go quietly into the night enabling such abuse anymore.
How can we have any dignity, honor or pride in ourselves if we validate this continued process of ballot box terrorism? How can we stand tall next to each other if we explain away another's cowardliness? How can we allow people to dehumanize our relationships and our very integrity if we give people passes to sit out the battle for our very freedom? No longer are political timelines a reason for delay, no longer are incremental approaches acceptable and no longer can the political process expect us to be patient and wait our turn. Our turn came long ago and there will be no more waiting.
As so many others have said, "The Gay ATM Machine is closed." Not one penny more for those who are fair weather friends, who ask us to delay and who insist patience is a virtue in the face of injustice.
New tactics must be embraced and honored. Civil disobedience must now be on the table and it is time for a long discussion about how it is to take place in the community. Perhaps we have to fill the jails, block military bases, sit in Congressional offices, block marriage bureaus, etc in order for them to know that business as usual has stopped. Careful and thoughtful consideration must be given now to this option.
For over thirty years I have been fighting ballot box measures and even have won some. What I have seen is a system of laws go in place around the country that prevents us from full equality. Some laws are specific like banning our participation in the military or DOMA. Some states ban adoption or foster care. Others give people permission to discriminate against us. We are not denied a few rights, we are being denied our basic freedom and dignity.
Enough. No More, Enough
DavidMixner.com - Live From Hell's Kitchen
----------
Tony Kushner ("Angels in America") weighed in about the Maine vote on yesterday's Advocate website:
The news from Maine doesnt make me depressed, but it does make me angry. Im angry that bigots, cretins, and theocrats get to vote on whether or not their fellow citizens are entitled to equality under the law. Our basic right to equal treatment is guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution and should not be subject to state referendums.
Im angry that the Catholic Church and the Mormons, tax-exempt under the increasingly laughable pretext that they have something to do with God, pump millions upon millions of dollars into this wicked campaign to promote bigotry and perpetuate human suffering, while supporters of LGBT equality pay taxes for the privilege of continuing to be not-fully enfranchised sub-citizens.
Im very angry that were being forced to fight for equality on a state-by-state basis. We are American citizens and we are entitled to 14th Amendment protection in every aspect of our lives, in every state in the union.
I have no doubt whatsoever that LGBT people will soon accomplish this, but Im angry at the setbacks, of course, in Maine, in California, which do nothing but hurt real human beings and gain no one anything that any sane human being could possibly want. And I guess I should add that Im angry at the LGBT communitys lack of effective national political leadership, our lack of a coordinated national strategy, but there are signs that maybe this is beginning to change. And I guess I should add that Im angry at myself: I didnt send money or help out in Maine, so who have I got to be angry at, really, other than myself?
On the other hand: 47% for marriage equality is a number that should hearten us and dishearten the bigots, cretins, and theocrats. So lets get back to work.
As Ben Smith reports at Politico:
Reconsidering marriage in New Hampshire
The defeat of same-sex marriage in Maine is prompting marriage foes in New Hampshire -- which now has same-sex marriage -- to try again:
Now that gay marriage has been defeated in Maine, attention again shifts to New Hampshire, where lawmakers say momentum from Tuesday's vote may fuel legislation to repeal the state's law and give voters a say.
Two proposals are being drafted in the N.H. House: One would repeal the law Gov. John Lynch signed in June and re-establish civil unions; the other is a constitutional amendment that would charge voters with deciding if "the state shall only recognize the union of one man and one woman as marriage."
----------Two proposals are being drafted in the N.H. House: One would repeal the law Gov. John Lynch signed in June and re-establish civil unions; the other is a constitutional amendment that would charge voters with deciding if "the state shall only recognize the union of one man and one woman as marriage."
David Mixner wrote a rabble-rousing column today, in part:
What is happening to us with this expanding system of Gay Apartheid in America cannot be allowed to continue and if it does, we cannot go quietly into the night enabling such abuse anymore.
How can we have any dignity, honor or pride in ourselves if we validate this continued process of ballot box terrorism? How can we stand tall next to each other if we explain away another's cowardliness? How can we allow people to dehumanize our relationships and our very integrity if we give people passes to sit out the battle for our very freedom? No longer are political timelines a reason for delay, no longer are incremental approaches acceptable and no longer can the political process expect us to be patient and wait our turn. Our turn came long ago and there will be no more waiting.
As so many others have said, "The Gay ATM Machine is closed." Not one penny more for those who are fair weather friends, who ask us to delay and who insist patience is a virtue in the face of injustice.
New tactics must be embraced and honored. Civil disobedience must now be on the table and it is time for a long discussion about how it is to take place in the community. Perhaps we have to fill the jails, block military bases, sit in Congressional offices, block marriage bureaus, etc in order for them to know that business as usual has stopped. Careful and thoughtful consideration must be given now to this option.
For over thirty years I have been fighting ballot box measures and even have won some. What I have seen is a system of laws go in place around the country that prevents us from full equality. Some laws are specific like banning our participation in the military or DOMA. Some states ban adoption or foster care. Others give people permission to discriminate against us. We are not denied a few rights, we are being denied our basic freedom and dignity.
Enough. No More, Enough
DavidMixner.com - Live From Hell's Kitchen
----------
Tony Kushner ("Angels in America") weighed in about the Maine vote on yesterday's Advocate website:
The news from Maine doesnt make me depressed, but it does make me angry. Im angry that bigots, cretins, and theocrats get to vote on whether or not their fellow citizens are entitled to equality under the law. Our basic right to equal treatment is guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution and should not be subject to state referendums.
Im angry that the Catholic Church and the Mormons, tax-exempt under the increasingly laughable pretext that they have something to do with God, pump millions upon millions of dollars into this wicked campaign to promote bigotry and perpetuate human suffering, while supporters of LGBT equality pay taxes for the privilege of continuing to be not-fully enfranchised sub-citizens.
Im very angry that were being forced to fight for equality on a state-by-state basis. We are American citizens and we are entitled to 14th Amendment protection in every aspect of our lives, in every state in the union.
I have no doubt whatsoever that LGBT people will soon accomplish this, but Im angry at the setbacks, of course, in Maine, in California, which do nothing but hurt real human beings and gain no one anything that any sane human being could possibly want. And I guess I should add that Im angry at the LGBT communitys lack of effective national political leadership, our lack of a coordinated national strategy, but there are signs that maybe this is beginning to change. And I guess I should add that Im angry at myself: I didnt send money or help out in Maine, so who have I got to be angry at, really, other than myself?
On the other hand: 47% for marriage equality is a number that should hearten us and dishearten the bigots, cretins, and theocrats. So lets get back to work.
