Today marks the one year anniversary of the California Supreme Court’s decision to overturn the ban on same-sex marriage that had been in place since 2000.
My partner and I were in Sydney on vacation at the time and didn’t realize it had happened until after we got home. And thanks to bad case of vacation hangover, and that we were already domestic partners, we didn’t feel particularly invested in the decision, I’m embarrassed to say. Sure we were glad the ban had been overturned but we had already decided to wait until 2009 to possibly tie the knot, provided same-sex marriage was legal at the time and that any initiative against it was defeated in the fall.
Over the next month we didn’t discuss or think about the ruling much despite the media frenzy that was building all around the state in the lead up to 5:oo p.m. on June 16, when the first same-sex weddings were to be performed.
I decided the day before that I wanted to go down to San Francisco City Hall and cover what would most certainly be a circus, as the first gay marriages were sure to bring out the most hateful and bigoted elements of our society, decrying that these marriages were an abomination and would bring about the end days.
After I covered the story, I promptly went home and asked my partner of 8 year to marry me. The weight of the day’s events, both historical and emotional, did not leave me any choice. Fortunately his answer was yes. We exchanged vows 3 months later.
So while not particularly important to us at the time, May 15, 2008 is now an incredibly important day, as it set in motion the events that allowed me to marry the love of my life. And June 16, thirty days from now, will also be an extraordinarily significant day, not only because it was the day I proposed, but it is the first anniversary of those couples who chose to be married in that “circus” the very first night.
So it is my sincere hope that the California Supreme Court will soon overturn Prop 8 and grant marriage equality to all Californians, and allow those brave couples to celebrate their first wedding anniversary. And allow us and the thousands that followed that day, to celebrate ours.
Equality California has launched the “Win Marriage Back” campaign aimed at restoring marriage equality California. In this effort they have release new television ads telling the stories of real familes in California who were impacted by the passage of Proposition 8.
Celebrity blogger Perez Hilton goes head-to-head with Maggie Gallagher, president of the National Organization for Marriage (NOM) on Larry King Live. Hardly a stellar performance for Perez, it’s still hard not to come out on top of the bigoted rantings of Maggie Gallagher. Watch.