It has been a tumultuous week since last Tuesday’s elections. Maine voters stripped their lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender friends and neighbors of the right to marry. Meanwhile, Kalamazoo residents voted to preserve anti-discrimination protections, and Washingtonians said “yes” to domestic partnerships. Now that the votes are in, it’s time to reflect on what is next in the push for full equality.
So now what? What does the path forward look like?
- Federal courts are considering a challenge to Prop. 8 on the grounds that it violates the United States Constitution. EQCA strongly supports this case and has filed a powerful brief urging the court to overturn Prop. 8. The Obama Administration needs to join the fight and stop the abhorrent abuse of the initiative process to eliminate the rights of any targeted minority. I strongly encourage you to sign our petition asking the Administration to file a brief in support of this case, and ask your friends and family to sign it, too.
- We must continue to come out and tell our stories to the people that matter. We need to gain support for marriage and that means talking to people who are not yet supportive. EQCA is going door to door with our coalition partners in neighborhoods across the state. Join our next canvass or volunteer at one of our local field offices.
- We must stop endorsing and giving money to candidates for office who do not support full and complete equality. Until the politicians who take our community for granted realize that they can no longer count on our votes unless we can count on theirs, they will not change. EQCA’s Political Action Committee has always endorsed only those candidates who support our equality 100 percent. We must emphasize that there is no middle ground. Either you support equality or you don’t.
- We must also make clear that there is nothing wrong with children learning that there are LGBT people. Our children should grow up in a world where they know they are safe and can fall in love and get married regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity. That is why we worked so hard to pass a bill in California establishing Harvey Milk Day, and we will continue to work for an inclusive curriculum. Those who oppose marriage equality are simply relying on blatant scare tactics. By working to ensure an inclusive curriculum we can take this argument away from them.
While I remain sad and angry about what happened in Maine, the results in Washington and Kalamazoo and the election of LGBT candidates throughout our nation demonstrate the progress we have made. Add these victories to the passage of federal hate crimes legislation, the signing of the Harvey Milk Day bill, marriage victories in Vermont and Iowa and the many other gains our community has made this year alone, and there is much reason for hope.
We are making tremendous progress, and while there will continue to be setbacks along the way, we will prevail.
With hope,
Geoff Kors
Executive Director
Equality California
