Behind the 8-Ball

Election seasons get heated. I get that. People get passionate about their politics. I totally get that. But as I've driven around these past few days and seen yard signs proudly displayed for “Yes on 8: Protect Marriage,” I simply don't get that. Actually, I get it. I understand that there are people who believe gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people should not be allowed to marry, let alone exist. I just don't get that in the year 2008, there are people who still think it is OK to publicly flaunt their prejudices so openly. Proposition 8, for those unfamiliar or living outside this big goofy place we call California, would permanently amend the state constitution to ban gay marriage. So all those happy, smiling, beautiful couples who got married this year thanks to the state supreme court overturning the previous ban on gay marriage would have their unions invalidated by the state. Wow, so much for family values.

At first, I wasn't too worried about Prop. 8. Public opinion on the issue had shifted. People were more accepting. Massachusetts led the way. And just last week Connecticut joined us in equality. Plus, hey, this is California. But then I started to see the ads. These horrible, despicable, hateful ads play to people's most base fears. Children will be taught gay marriage in schools! Churches will lose their tax exemption! Run for your lives, the gays are coming! (I can't bring myself to post or even link to their bile, so search “Yes on 8” yourself if you must...just be sure to have a strong stomach). And then I heard how the “Yes” people had raised more cash than the “No” folks, in spite of high-profile donations from stars like Brad Pitt, Steven Spielberg, Kate Capshaw and T.R. Knight and support from big names like Ellen DeGeneres, Margaret Cho and a slew of other famous folks. Thankfully the “No on Prop. 8” folks have pushed back forcefully against the hate. Still, I'm worried.

There is no way for me to not feel this vote viscerally. Each “Protect Marriage,” sign I see is like a kick in the gut. Each house I pass sends a pang through my body. The people in that house think I shouldn't be allowed to marry. The people in that house think I don't deserve the same rights as everyone else. The people in that house think I am fundamentally wrong. It hurts – it hurts a lot. This is not what America is all about. In the land of the free and the home of the brave, what is more free than letting people marry who they love and what is more brave than accepting someone despite his or her differences? Who I marry doesn't diminish who you marry in any way, shape or form. Love is love. Hate is hate. Which do you want people to feel as they walk down the aisle? Come on, California, vote No on Prop. 8. Protect love.