Sunday, November 16, 2008

An Atlanta March for Proposition 8... Were you there?





On Saturday, in the heart of downtown Atlanta, a march for Proposition 8 occurred. I was there with camera in hand. Were you at a similar march in your city?

Proposition 8, according to an online source, is a state ballot proposition that amended the state Constitution to restrict the definition of marriage to a union between a man and a woman. It overrode a recent California Supreme Court decision that had recognized same-sex marriage in California as a fundamental right. The official ballot title language for Proposition 8 is "Eliminates Right of Same-Sex Couples to Marry." The entirety of the text to be added to the constitution was: "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California."

What are your thoughts on gay marriage?

7 comments:

back2life said...

No, because I resent how the white gay mainstream has so quickly pointed the finger at and made the passing of Prop. 8 a referendum on the homophobia of the black community.

Again it's Black vs. gay, as if those of us who fit both definitions don't matter or even exist. It's painful for me to support a marriage movement that not only does not account for the sexist and misguided social history of the act, but also for being a member of a group that denies part of me.

C. Baptiste-Williams said...

while i have no personal desire to get married... i believe any consenting adult should have the right to marry whomever they please and receive the same rights that come with it as everyone else.

bLaQ~n~MiLD said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
bLaQ~n~MiLD said...

I did hear about that @ catchingupat20. Hmmm... No I was not present for any of the rallies although I do believe that given the social/economic benifits of being married in this country that no citizen should be denied the right. I personally don't agree with the termonology tho...

~Damnit!

Crazy Diamond said...

Aw, I''m so sorry I missed you out there. It was a great crowd and fun to be apart of. It's amazing how something as simple as a random person honking their horn can make you feel inspired and reinvigorated to continue the fight.

My thoughts on most of this is that it's not about marriage, or civil unions, or hate crimes or much of anything else. All of these questions are about the dignity of gay people, and some straight people who are desperate to assert their superiority over us in any way they can. I hope that they and so many other people saw that our fight is not over, and we will not recede to the margins again.

And I was deeply touched by the many, many, many straight couples who were at both Atlanta rallies with their young children. Our efforts have come a long way.

Corey Keith said...

Catchingupat20, I hate to reveal this, but I agree with the white gay mainstream on this issue. Predominately black precincts voted overwhelmingly for propositon 8. And I actually understand how you feel about being a member of a group that denies a part of me. That's what it feels like for me as a black gay man- I feel as though black America denies me as gay man.

c. baptiste, we have another point we agree on.

blaq, I also feel you on the terminology. The bottom line for me are the deserved rights.

Crazy, we need to get up and have lunch!!!

Anonymous said...

I sure wish I could have been there. I believe that the government should have no right in whom we find ourselves in love with. Notice that I didn't say choose, because we don't CHOOSE to love a man over a woman, nor do we choose to love a woman over a man. Love is blind and it knows no race, ethnic origin, status, culture, or sex. There was a time when you wouldn't DARE be a black man/woman and be wedded to a white man/woman... and that fits perfectly into the perimeters of a male-female marriage... but it wasn't accepted back then.

So just like frivolous things like that were discarded (and yet still present in some places), adults should stop trying to dictate to adults with alternative lifestyles what they can and cannot do. I'm not living so that I can just sit and be told who I can and cannot love. There is a fine line between the law and what is natural. Love is something you just can't control.