As many of you may have forgotten, and as I did for a while, there's currently a big court challenge going on to California's Proposition 8 which by a narrow margin banned Gay Marriage in this state. I'm all for letting any pair of consenting adults of any sex marry and think it's inevitable that it will become the norm…but as I said here, I'm not sure this is the best route to get there. If someone made enough of an effort (i.e., raised enough cash) to get the question on the ballot again here, I think Same-Sex Wedlock would win and it would be a more decisive and widely-accepted way for it to become a law of the land. My fear is that if a court undoes Prop 8, there will be an anger, not so much at the decision but at the fact that "The Will of the Voters" has been nullified by one guy in a black robe.
Looks like we may soon see if that happens. Closing arguments were argued the other day in the Prop 8 trail and a decision is expected in a month or so. If you'd like to read a very long PDF file of those closing arguments, you can get it from this link. If you don't have the time or inclination, let me summarize…
- The lawyer saying that we have to ban Gay Marriage said marriage is all about procreation and since gays can't procreate, they have no right to marry. The lawyer saying we have to overturn Proposition 8 pointed out that some straight couples cannot procreate and others choose not to…but we still allow those couples to marry.
- The lawyer saying that we have to ban Gay Marriage pointed out that there is a long tradition in this country of banning Gay Marriage because it might destroy society. The lawyer saying we have to overturn Proposition 8 pointed out that we once had a long tradition in this country of banning Interracial Marriage because it might destroy society and that was overturned. Somehow, society has survived.
- The lawyer saying that we have to ban Gay Marriage admitted that he had no real proof that it would destroy society since it's never really been tried. The lawyer saying we have to overturn Proposition 8 reminded the Judge over and over again of this admission and also argued that the right to marry is a human right and that the state has no right to discriminate against a group of individuals and deny them that right.
Now, there was more to it than that but really not a lot more. You can never be sure about these things, and of course I'm the layest of all laymen…but if there's a place I can wager on this, I think I'll go slap a few bucks down saying that the judge will at least partially overturn Proposition 8. His Honor might decide to chicken out and either say no or somehow pass the buck to others…but the "uphold Prop 8" guy almost looks like someone paid him to throw the game. I'd also bet that those who will be furious about this will begin screaming about "activist judges" who put themselves above The People of California, when a more likely explanation is that their side simply put forth a lousy case. I'm not sure there is a strong case against Gay Marriage but I'll bet there's a better one than this.