All People Should Have the Same Civil Rights: Vote NO On Proposition 8

Proposition 8 is the most important issue on the California ballot this November. If passed, the proposition would amend the California Constitution to eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry.

California has been wrestling with this issue for years. In 2000, voters passed Proposition 22, which changed the California Family Code to formally define marriage in California as being between a man and a woman.

Next in 2004, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom performed same-sex weddings in his city, but the unions were overturned by the California Supreme Court. He did however; inspire a legal challenge that together with similar cases reached the California Supreme Court. A 4-3 decision in June legalized same-sex marriages.

Now correct me if I’m wrong, but all men are created equal, right? Shouldn’t we all be granted the same rights? It’s wrong to eliminate a fundamental right of any Californian to marry the person they love. How can we justify not giving every single person the same rights?

One thing that really gets to me is that those in favor of this Proposition say that their children will be forced to learn about same-sex marriages in school. The truth is not one word in Prop. 8 mentions education, and no child can be forced, against the will of their parents, to be taught anything about health and family issues at school. California law prohibits it.

A Sacramento Superior Court judge has already ruled that this claim by the proponents of Prop 8 is “false and misleading.” Proponents of this measure used a case from Massachusetts in their ad to intentionally mislead voters.

Looking back, homosexuality isn’t anything new. It’s been around since early history, like in ancient Greece, where it was a part of the cultural norm. It wasn’t until the Christian religion stepped in and gave us the outlook we have today, where marriage is a holy union between one man and one woman.

The bottom-line is that I can’t see how the government can bestow unequal rights on people when gays and lesbians are no different from any other person in society.