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Like any Obama supporter, I'm pretty much thrilled right now. Not only did he win, he won decisively, and I will join many others in eagerly awaiting his inauguration.
But despite my elation over the presidential contest, I can't ignore the massive hit to civil rights that occurred in this election. Constitutional amendments banning gay marriage were approved in Arizona, Florida and even California; similarly, gay adoption has been banned in Arkansas.
If you're at all cynical, you weren't surprised by the decisions in Arizona, Florida or Arkansas. But the success of Proposition 8 in California is a bit of a head-scratcher, especially since gay marriage was legalized there earlier this year.
Proposition 8 wound up on the ballot because the opposition felt that the California Supreme Court had not accurately represented the "will of the people." Well, that's great, but I'm quite sure that segregation was the "will of the people" when the Brown v. Board of Education decision arrived. Sometimes social progress just has to be made without the approval of the ignorant.
Proposition 8 doesn't just deny gays in California the right to marry. It actually revokes that right, since same-sex marriage has been legal there since May. I find it shameful that in 2008, an American state bestowed rights on a minority group, only to take them away months later.
Unlike what opponents think, the fight for gay marriage is not about special privilege. It is about homosexuals obtaining the same level of rights that are offered to every heterosexual, because as it is, not even civil unions carry the same benefits as marriage. And even if they did, leaving a distinction between "marriage" and "civil union" implies that the latter is inherently unequal and inferior. It is not an acceptable compromise, nor should it be viewed as one.
Of course, these debates really just get me confused about why marriage - as a religious institution - even exists in the eyes of the state. In a perfect world, all couples would get civil unions for legal purposes, with marriages carried out in churches, synagogues, etc. I realize this won't happen, and I don't expect it to, but marriage has indeed evolved over its long existence. We've moved past treating women like property of their husbands, and if marriage survived that change of its tradition, I think accepting same-sex unions will work out OK.
All told, I'm happy that voters have set aside racial prejudice in electing a black man for president. But legalizing bigotry toward homosexuals is a step backward.
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