Election Results for Gays And Lesbians 2008
Wednesday November 5, 2008
It was an exciting election night as Americans watched Barack Obama become elected as the first African American president in US history. Gays and lesbians have reason to celebrate, as Obama's policies are more friendly to gays than John McCain.
However, gays and lesbians weren't quite so lucky with the anti-gay initiatives in four states.
Passed: Act One in Arkansas
Act one prevents any unmarried couple, gay or straight, from becoming an adoptive or foster parent.Passed: Proposition 102 in Arizona
Prop 102 states "Only a union of one man and one woman shall be valid or recognized as a marriage in this state."Passed: Amendment 2 in Florida
Amendment 2 makes marriage only legal between one man and one woman.Prop 8 in California
As of 11pm PST Prop 8 was leading 53% to 47%. Prop 8 will amend California's constitution and will take away the right of gay and lesbian couples to marry.© Photo by Kathy Belge
Why is everyone forgetting Connecticut?
For the record, Question 1 in Connecticut was voted down. It would’ve opened up the constitution to amendment which the catholics here were fighting for to ban our newly acquired gay marriage rights.
In California ironically, people overwhelmingly voted to give stock animals legal protection/rights (PROP 2) at the same time they are stripping the legal rights of gays to marry.
Are you serious???????????/
You are no longer able to get married in California if you are gay/lesbian???
Why did they change it?????
So much for equal rights in this country… Glad I’m moving to Canada!
How many times does the gay community have to fight for rights. Marriage, as many have forgotten, is a LEGAL RIGHT! It is not just a priveledge for GOD-FEARING Christians and others who prescribe to a religious sect. Other rights that Americans have are the RIGHT to include freedom of speech, the right to bear arms, the right to have an attorney when arrested… How is it that the right to MARRY THE PERSON I LOVE has been taken away?
Though various religions adopted marriage as a religious RITE of passage (read as rite=ritual, not RIGHT), marriage did not originate with religion. Marriage BETWEEN A MAN AND A WOMAN originated as a legal contract that served fiscal and property purposes. Also, marriage was a contract between a man and a woman that was designed to prevent a woman from taking a man other than her husband to bed. This is more commonly known as WOMEN BEING CONSIDERED AS PROPERTY AKA CHATTEL! A man sleeping around on his wife was condoned by society while women were adorned with a BIG RED “A” if they cheated.
How many times do individuals who love their same-sexed partner have to justify the relationship as EQUAL, “just as good as,” and LOVING.
How many times do individuals who love have to fight for the RIGHT to enjoy the same benefits of a LEGAL, MARRIED relationship??? FYI: CIVIL UNION does NOT equal marriage. The rights are not THE SAME. SEPARATE IS NOT EQUAL!!
Gays and lesbians are GREAT when they increase the property value of a home and neighborhood, increase the safety of a community, create great fashion and art, or even help WIN A POLITICAL CAMPAIGN FOR THE FIRST BLACK PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.! But give them the RIGHT TO MARRY?? Oh now that’s just really too much to ask as regular citizens to have the RIGHT to marry. I guess the gays and lezzies should just leave that up to the straight society to enjoy. Though you will allow us to be your nurses, your hairstylists, your social worker, your kids teacher, your Broadway entertainer, your Number One daytime talkshow host, your server, your political leader, your babysitter, your therapist, your accountant, your real estate agent, your interior decorator, your esthetician, your masseuse, your stripper, your chef, your administrative assistant… and on and on. AH, thank you for those great honors and opportunities to serve YOU.
But really what we really just wanted was equality for ourselves in our communities!!
Well, let’s let the YES ON 8 people live in their “regular” world and live in fear that the GAYS are going to RUIN the institution of marriage and “family.” Surely, the “straight” society hasn’t done enough to really just FUCK UP the whole STRAIGHT institution and unity of marriage. Not to mention to HETERO divorce rate! Or what about how they are fucking up their kids so badly that I have to see them in a shelter for runaways, community clinics for mental health counseling, in the ER from broken bones because dad just “had a bad day,” or in a legal mediation after mom and dad decided to file for divorce when dad cheated on mom? Ah, but really, the gays they shouldn’t have the legal rights in having children and in marriage.
The GAYS WILL REALLY MAKE IT WORSE!?!?!!
God only KNOWS what is right and wrong and can judge accordingly. Many who voted YES on 8 believe that humans should not judge, as it is not the human’s place to do so. Judgement is, in fact according to the Catholic and Christian religions, up to only one Being. So, thank you Yes on 8 for following the “Golden Rule” and treating others as you would have others treat you! Thank you for reserving judgement for Him. And thank you most of all for teaching your community, kids, and church members the TRUE values of YOUR faith: prejudice, discrimination, marginalization, and bigotry. YOU are truly amazing and maybe someday He will forgive you for your faults.
wasnt there one in Maine that was voted down as well? Or was that the CT one that was referred to?
Once O gets some civil libertarians on the Supreme Court the Supremes will strike down discrimination, and then I think we’ll see civil unions with exactly the same rights, or perhaps EVERYONE will get civil unions from the state and just have to go find some friendly clergy to marry us.
Dont’ despair, this is only a temporary glitch in the road
Onward and upwards -
Aloha to all-
As a bi-racial lesbian, I feel so lucky to be alive in this time in history. It’s the first time in 8 years that I can say I’m proud to be from the U.S.!! Even though we aren’t where we wanna be as gay people…we’re a lot closer to being treated as equals now that Barracks in office.********************
Not so long ago (3 to 4 years), it was still illegal on the books for a mixed couple to marry in Alabama. We need to keep fighting for the FEDERAL government to pass a bill to ok gay marriages so that the states will have to follow as they had to do in mixed marriages.
As a lesbian, watching the 2008 elections, I felt sad to see proposition 8 pass with the California voters. This is a setback in civil rights, maintaining inequality, as heterosexuals are preserved with privilege and power, while the LGBT community continues to be marginalized.
The campaign for proposition 8 is based on fear, and intolerance of families that are different than proposition 8 proponent’s conditioning of what family “should” be. The arguments we hear from the yes on proposition 8 proponents, are basically the same arguments we heard from people opposing interracial marriage.
It is ironic that these pious, religious conservatives want to “protect” their children, yet are the first to bring up sexuality. For me, as I would guess many heterosexuals would agree, marriage is so much more than sexuality. Marriage is a lifetime commitment to love, honor and be faithful to my partner. The formal ceremony is a time of celebration and declaration of my love for my partner in the presence of friends, family, and community.
Just like heterosexuals, I am a mother, have an extended family, and am an active member in my community and church. My stand to legalize gay marriage is asking for my community to recognize my partner as my spouse. On a personal level this includes my partner being included in family functions, social functions at work and inclusion in the community as a couple. We are basically asking for to have the same rights as a heterosexual couples have.
On election night, this country and one man rendered me: speechless, emotional, proud, invigorated, hopeful, determined, heard, triumphant, tearful and peaceful.
Barack Obama. The 44th president of the United States of America.
The LEADER of our country, the same country who would have denied him the right to vote, based on his skin color, had he been born before 1870 and the passing of the 15th amendment.
The significance of this achievement can not be denied.
Not that he deserved the presidency based on skin color. He didn’t. Just like Sarah Palin didn’t deserve my vote simply because we share the same anatomy.
My point is we’d be remiss not to stop and reflect on how far we, as a nation, have come in seeing PAST the color of a person’s skin – so that we may hear his or her voice instead.
I realize that while much of the nation celebrates this morning, there is a large percentage of people who did not vote for Obama who are disappointed, scared, angry and worried about the safety and direction of our country. Both mine and April’s families are among that group and I respect their concerns and sincerely hope Obama serves them in ways they don’t anticipate, and surprises them by governing with their concerns in mind.
For the first time, in a victory speech, a President included ME, as a gay person, in his remarks.
He said:
“It’s the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled – Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of Red States and Blue States: we are, and always will be, the United States of America.”
He didn’t trip over the word GAY. It didn’t sound dirty. Or Shameful. It sounded…like it belonged.
Obama’s appeal and promise of CHANGE was enough to turn Republican strongholds the color blue. Last night was the first time in forty years the state of Virginia voted democratically. Florida and North Carolina also switched things up, voting for Obama.
Those voters agreed that his platform, not his skin color, was the issue. Their vote proved there is no place for discrimination in the White House.
However, thousands of people who are this morning patting themselves on the back because they helped elect the first African American president, also voted to write discrimination against gays and lesbians into the Constitution.
The irony is painful.
How can we travel so far forward AND backward in the same night?
Voters in Arkansas said gays and lesbians can’t be foster parents. I know, without a doubt, April and I would provide a loving, stable, strict and safe environment for any child – whether it was biological, adopted or fostered. To suggest children are better off left in “the system” than with us is insulting, hurtful and punishes children who long for the stability that many loving same-sex couples could provide. Shame on you Arkansas. Shame on you. (Anyone who doubts the type of home a gay or lesbian could provide need only visit my friend Lori’s blog. She adopted two special needs kids and they are thriving.)
Voters in Florida and Arizona said no, same sex couples can’t marry. Voters in California voted YES on Prop 8, stripping the rights of gay couples who until today, could get married anywhere in the state. My friends Heather and Chelsea have been married a little more than a week. Now, California, the state that recognized and blessed their union, is telling them the love they share is a second-class love, not worthy of the same type of respect and protection given to heterosexual couples.
Separate, not equal.
Sounds familiar, right?
A little like the road traveled by others facing discrimination based on race or gender…
Forward. Backward.
The path toward equality for the the GLBT community will continue to be uphill, but the election of President Obama should serve as a shining ray of hope to all Americans that wrongs can be righted. Although the hateful heart of heterosexism still beats, its pulse is slowly but surely diminishing. We must not waiver–this fight will prevail.
Whatever excuses you want to come up with, the fact is that all the major party candidates abandoned the gay community this election. That includes Barack Obama. Too bad that a man who fought so long and hard for the rights of African-Americans couldn’t empathize with another group in our society who experience persistent and malicious prejudice on a daily basis. Hypocritical and cowardly, don’t you think?
As a woman I don’t think I have anything to gain from the changes happening. If I were a black male maybe, but as Latina lesbian… nothing will change for me NOTHING… on the contrary.. now when I call out racism, racist people will have an argument saying that there is no such thing since a BLACK MALE is a president therefore racism doesn’t exist.
there is a fed law that says marriage is only one man and one female. it was passed in 1996 . I just found it today and to say the least, living in florida I am ready to leave the country!
Hey now! Since we have elected-President Obama, it is our new beginning, a new chapter for our future. It will change eventually. Older Americans are leaving us behind and we have Younger Americans are coming in. The problem was that Older Americans were holding our rights back. We had a lot of young voters that voted for Obama. This tells me, that younger generation are stepping in and WILL FIGHT FOR OUR EQUAL RIGHTS FOR ALL INDIVIDUAL AMERICANS. This is too exciting. This will take some time. Just keep living as who you are. Don’t ever give up HOPE!
I woul like to se my comments!!!!!!Or you poste only comments you like??????