Propostion 8 in California Passes: A Tragedy In My View

The first same-sex couple to marry in Los Angeles County has launched a lawsuit to fight back against the constitutional amendment that would overturn their legal union.

Proposition 8, which limits marriage in California to heterosexual couples, passed Tuesday with 52 per cent support -- even though California courts legalized same-sex marriage last June.

It is unclear what the amendment means for the 18,000 same-sex couples who have married in the state since June.

Robin Tyler and Diane Olson, who were the first to get married last June, said they have already initiated a lawsuit to fight back against the amendment.

"It's never happened in American history where a group of people have been in a constitution and then taken out again," Tyler told CTV's Canada AM on Thursday, Read More HERE

When I was little, I never really had the dreams like my peers to get married. I wanted to be a mom, but I did not have a good impression of marriage, to say the least, and I definitely intentionally place it in my list of Top 10 things to do when I grow up. When I talked to elders and learned how during the 50's and before couples who had pre-marital sex had to get married if they accidentally got pregnant, even if they didn't want to, I further cemented my plans to not get married when I grew older. That was when I was a kid.

But as a heterosexual unmarried mom of a five year-old, I still have the choice to change my mind. If my daughter's father and I decided today that we wanted to skip out to Las Vegas and legalize by marriage a relationship that has been existence since 2002, then we can do that if we choose. We have that right. Nowadays, fortunately for us, we don't have to get married because pushy parents tell us its the "right thing to do". And that's fair and reasonable. Times have changed in that respect for the better.

But, I can't shake the feeling that fairness in my situation is not fairly doled out to people in same-sex unions who happen to want to take their relationship to the altar. How on earth do I or anyone who is heterosexual like me have the right to deny that choice from someone else?

I am sick and tired of hearing how the Bible is used as reference for a man-made law. If biblical directives are the root of how all living should take place in this country, then polygamy should be made legal, capital punishment-- complete with legalized amputations, stabbings and shootings-- should be the law of the land, regardless of state (an eye for an eye, right) and liars, adulterers and envious beings should have their personal rights revoked as well. For, all of these practices took place in the bible. Yet, certain modifications in our daily living are made for these differences, with man-made laws in place to support the choice. Sadly and hypocritically, that has not extended to those who are gay.

I purposely have not mentioned the seperation of church and state because I think that's a moot point. Regardless of what our history books read, the reality is is that this country breeds peer pressure to be Christian, whether its a personal choice or not. For those who are other, it is not a comfortable existence in most environments if your choice of name for the creator comes up. When it came to proposition 8 voting, exit polls indicated that 7 in 10 African-American Americans voted to hinder gays from marrying because, as they stated in action, they attend church.

If attending church is the license to judge others and restrict others based on your selective application of "sin violation", then I fear for when karma comes back around, for this will definitely be a hard return look in the mirror.

What is laughable at best is that African-Americans overwhelmingly voted for this "protection" of marriage, but, statistically, in proportion to our population in this country, we are the least likely to marry each other. As interracial relationships rise, marriage between black partners has declined. So, the question is (in response to the bumper sticker graphic on this post) who exactly are we saving marriage from if we aren't doing it ourselves?