CA: Gather Signatures to Repeal Prop 8 This Weekend

Just got this from Love Honor Cherish:

Help get signatures this weekend

This weekend volunteers throughout the state will gather to collect signatures to put a new initiative on the ballot in November 2010 that would repeal Proposition 8 and restore equal marriage rights for same-sex couples. In the Los Angeles area join us at these events:

Saturday:

Saturday, Feb 27
8 a.m. to 12 noon
Burbank Farmers Market
Meet at corner of 3rd and Orange Grove in Burbank (park at City Hall, same corner)

Saturday, Feb 27
9 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Torrance Farmer's Market
2400 Jefferson St. (park in parking lot)
Meet at 8:50 a.m. for a brief training

Saturday, Feb 27
10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Whole Foods Market - Redondo Beach
405 N. Pacific Coast Hwy (park in parking lot)
Meet at 9:45 a.m. for a brief training

Sunday:


Sunday, Feb 28
8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Hollywood Farmers Market
Meet at Cinerama Dome, 6360 Sunset Blvd (park on street or at lot at Ivar & Delongpre - $2 for first 2 hrs w/validation at market)

Sunday, Feb 28
9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Santa Monica Farmers Market (Ocean Park)
Meet at grassy area near SW corner of Main St. and Ocean Park (park on street)

Sunday, Feb 28
10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Studio City Farmers Market
Meet at main gate of CBS Studios, 4024 Radford (free parking at CBS)

THINGS TO REMEMBER:


Please come on time, but if you're late, look for the volunteers in the yellow SignForEquality T-shirts. And, be sure to bring:

1. A couple of clipboards and a few pens (if you can).
2. Plenty of quarters for parking meters (City of Los Angeles meters now operate on Sundays!)
3. $10 donation for our Sign For Equality volunteer t-shirt

To find out more about signature gathering, or to learn how you can help, go to SignForEquality.com, the first-ever social networking site for volunteer signature gatherers. Download a petition, print it, get signatures and then send it in. You can also:
- Get trained using online videos.
- Join or create a signature gathering team and set goals for yourself and your team.
- Share tips and learn about events where signature gathering is taking place.

P.S. Join us for our next weekly meeting Tuesday, March 2 at 7:30 p.m. at Crescent Heights United Methodist Church, 1296 N Fairfax Ave.

CA: EQCA Sponsors Bill Allowing Dissolution of a Gay Marriage/Civil Union at the Same Time

Equality California is sponsoring a new bill introduced last Friday by Assemblymember Fiona Ma (D-San Francisco) that would create a consolidated form and procedure to dissolve both a civil marriage and domestic partnership.

AB 2700 would amend the state's family code, allowing for couples who first registered as domestic partners and who legally married thereafter, to dissolve both contracts through a single, uniform procedure. The current system forces couples to go through a separate process for each.

"Currently, couples must navigate a confusing system that is especially daunting for those who lack legal representation," said Geoff Kors, Equality California executive director. "Since the State of California treats the relationships of same-sex couples differently, we need this legislation to prevent couples from having to jump through bureaucratic hoops until we restore a system of fairness and equality."

Full Story from EQCA
Click here for gay marriage resources in California.
To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Marriage Equality USA Dance for Equality in Oakland, CA on February 6th!

Uptown Dance for Equality in Downtown Oakland!
Saturday, February 6, 2010 8pm - midnight
Tickets are $30/online $35/door

* Emcee Molly McKay, National Media Director of Marriage Equality USA, and the Fairy Butch aka Karlyn Lotney, will keep the party going while we revel in our shared intention of marriage equality.

* Swing lesson led by Bay Area Dance Teacher Extraordinaire Laurie Ann Lepoff!

* Fabulous spotlight dance performances by:
- Vernon Newton and the Bollywood Babes: Hip-hop
- Lynne Jassem: Tap
- Zoe Balfour and Citabria Phillips: Foxtrot
- Calvin Hamilton and Partner: Salsa
- Jean Ma and Bromley Palamountain: Lindy Hop
- and more!

* Food and beverages provided!

Location: Uptown Body & Fender
401 26th Street (between Broadway/Telegraph)
Oakland, CA 94612

Purchase Tickets in advance and SAVE!
www.dance4equal.com
http://www.facebook.com/l/e1416;www.dance4equal.com
- $30 per ticket in advance
- Buy five or more tickets in advance online and receive a $25 discount (applied during the transaction)
- $35 at the door
Includes food and beverages!
Bring your friends: partnered and single, straight and gay - let's all have a good time together for the cause!

CA: Proposed Law Would Take Away One of Prop 8's Main Arguments

San Francisco state Sen. Mark Leno supports gay marriage - but he doesn’t think clergy should have to perform the ceremonies. Leno, who is gay, is introducing legislation that says no religious leader would be forced to perform a marriage that goes against their own beliefs or that of their faith. The bill would also re-emphasize the tax-exempt status of churches, and states that they would not lose this status by refusing to perform same-sex marriages.

Leno, a Democrat, contends the bill would not actually change the law because the First Amendment already offers these protections.

Instead, Leno said, it is a clarification aimed right at the ongoing debate over Proposition 8, the 2008 initiative that ended California’s brief experiment with same sex marriage. The measure won by six points after a campaign in which proponents sought to mislead voters, Leno contends.

Full Story from Capitol Weekly
Click here for gay marriage resources in California.
To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

CA: New Law Recognizes Gay Marriage From Out of State... Sort Of

SB54 specifies that same sex marriages are recognized in California. The marriages must meet one of two qualifications: a) they must have been entered into legally during the period of time when California offered gay marriage; b) they must have taken place before 11-05-2008 in a state that legally performs same sex marriage. Additionally, any gay marriage taking place after that date in a state that legally performs it will also be recognized in California - affording the brides or grooms all the rights and responsibilities that come with a marriage -- but the union will not legally be designated as "marriage." Full Story from KESQ: http://www.kesq.com/Global/story.asp?S=11753324

Click here for gay marriage resources in California.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

CA: 9th Circuit Affirms Campaign Document Ruling

A federal appeals court reaffirmed its ruling Wednesday that allowed sponsors of California's ban on same-sex marriage to withhold campaign strategy documents from gay rights advocates who are seeking to overturn the ballot measure. The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco on Dec. 11 had overturned a judge's order to produce the documents, ruling 3-0 that their disclosure might discourage participation in future campaigns and inhibit strategists from speaking candidly. An appellate judge then sought a rehearing before an 11-judge panel, but the court said Wednesday that the request failed to gain majority support from its members. No vote total was announced. The November 2008 initiative, Proposition 8, amended the California Constitution to define marriage as the union of a man and a woman, overturning a May 2008 state Supreme Court ruling that allowed gay and lesbian couples to marry. Full Story from SF Gate: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/12/31/BAGA1BBNTC.DTL&feed=rss.gay

Click here for gay marriage resources in California.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

CA: Federal Proposition 8 Trial Begins on January 11th

The trial in the federal lawsuit seeking to overturn California’s Proposition 8 starts Jan. 11 in U.S. District Court in San Francisco. It could last a month. Representing the gay side are famed attorneys Ted Olson and David Boies, who, in 2000, argued opposite sides of the Bush/Gore "hanging chad" election mess before the U.S. Supreme Court. Intervening for the gay side are lawyers from Lambda Legal, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the National Center for Lesbian Rights. Their request to join the case on the same level as Olson and Boies was denied after they angered Olson and Boies by speaking ill of the case, saying it was poorly timed and unwise. The city of San Francisco also has intervened on behalf of the gays. The defendants in the case -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Attorney General Jerry Brown (who very likely is running for governor) and the counties of Alameda and Los Angeles -- will not actually defend Prop. 8 because they agree with Olson and Boies that it violates the U.S. Constitution. It is highly unusual for a state attorney general to refuse to defend his state’s constitution. Prop. 8 amended the California Constitution to re-ban same-sex marriage. Full Story from Bay Windows: http://www.baywindows.com/index.php?ch=news&sc=glbt&sc2=news&sc3=&id=100447

Click here for gay marriage resources in California.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Signature Gathering to Repeal Prop 8 This Weekend

Help Us Get Signatures Before the Holidays! Go to SignForEquality.com, where you can download a petition form and learn how to get signatures. If you're in the Los Angeles area, join us for signature gathering on these dates: Friday, Dec 18 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. Venice Farmer's Market 501 Venice Boulevard Meet at front of market, inside orange cones, at corner of Venice Blvd and Ocean Ave. (free parking at lot on Dell Ave. near corner of Venice Blvd) Friday, Dec 18 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Echo Park Farmers Market 1125 Logan Street (near Downtown L.A.) Meet in front of market (park on street) Saturday, Dec 19 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Santa Monica Farmers Market (S.M. Promenade) Meet at corner of 2nd Street and Arizona Ave (park on street) Saturday, Dec 19 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sherman Oaks Galleria (San Fernando Valley) Meet at NW corner of Sepulveda and Ventura blvds. (free parking in mall with validation) Sunday, Dec 20 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Santa Monica Farmers market (Ocean Park) Meet at corner of Main St. and Ocean Park (park on street) Monday, Dec. 21 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. West Hollywood Farmers Market (Plummer Park) Meet at Fountain Avenue entrance, between Vista and Fuller avenues (park on street) Mon, Tues and Wed - Dec. 21-23 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. each night Lady Gaga Concerts Nokia Theater/Staples Center (Downtown L.A.) Meet at lobby of 888 S. Figueroa Street (park at 827 N. Figueroa - $8 flat fee - or other private lots nearby). We'll gather signatures from people waiting in line! THINGS TO REMEMBER: Please come on time, but if you're late, look for the volunteers in the yellow SignForEquality T-shirts. And, be sure to bring: 1. A couple of clipboards and a few pens (if you can). 2. Plenty of quarters for parking meters 3. $10 donation for our Sign For Equality volunteer t-shirt For more information about this or other team signature gathering events, contact Andy at andy@wlaequality.org We need 1 million signatures in the next 16 weeks. Let's get thousands this weekend! P.S. Join us for our next weekly meeting Tuesday, December 22 at 7:30 p.m. at Crescent Heights United Methodist Church, 1296 N Fairfax Ave. This week, we'll meet briefly and then head over to Sheddy's Pub at 361 S. Fairfax (near the Grove) for a social mixer.

CA: County Wants to Join Prop 8 Defenders in Lawsuit

Imperial County officials want to join the sponsors of California's gay marriage ban in defending Proposition 8 during an upcoming trial. The Imperial County Board of Supervisors voted in favor of an emergency motion Tuesday to intervene in the case. Supervisors say the county's participation is needed because Attorney General Jerry Brown supports overturning the voter-approved measure, while Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has taken a neutral position on it. The case is scheduled to go to trial on Jan. 11. A final pretrial hearing is scheduled in San Francisco on Wednesday. The papers filed by the county say that 70 percent of Imperial's voters supported Proposition 8. Full Story from SFGate: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/12/15/state/n172126S51.DTL&tsp=1

Click here for gay marriage resources in California.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

CA: Equality California Opens Riverside Office

The state's largest gay-rights group is opening its first office in western Riverside and San Bernardino counties today. San Francisco-based Equality California is holding a noon open house at the new office, 1410 Third St., Suite 7, in Riverside. The office is another sign of efforts by the group to focus more intensely on conservative areas such as the Inland region, where Prop. 8 passed overwhelmingly last year and banned same-sex marriage. Equality California seeks to overturn Prop. 8. The organization also opened field offices in Palm Springs, Fresno, San Diego, Sacramento, San Jose and West Hollywood this year and plans to open offices in Orange County and South Los Angeles, spokesman Jorge Amaro said. Full Story from PE.com: http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_S_gayrights12.481b6c9.html

Click here for gay marriage resources in California.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

CA: Repeal Prop 8 Signature Gathering Thus Weekend

Go to SignForEquality.com, where you can download a petition form and learn how to get signatures. If you're in the Los Angeles area, join us for signature gathering this Saturday and Sunday. Saturday, Dec 12 6-10pm Mundos Art Fest - Burbank Sponsored by Argentine Assn of Los Angeles 2100 N. Glenoaks Blvd (park on street) Sunday, Dec 13 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 pm. Santa Monica Farmers Market (Ocean Park) Meet at corner of Main St. and Ocean Park (park on street) Sunday, Dec 13 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. Encino Farmers Market 17400 Victory Blvd between Balboa Blvd, and White Oak Blvd. (free parking next door) Sunday, Dec. 13 4:30-8:30pm "Wedding for All" fundraiser - Hollywood Hollywood Lutheran Church 1733 N. New Hampshire Ave. (park on street - bring quarters) THINGS TO REMEMBER: Please come on time, but if you're late, look for the volunteers in the yellow SignForEquality T-shirts. And, be sure to bring: 1. A couple of clipboards and a few pens (if you can). 2. Plenty of quarters for parking meters 3. $10 donation for our Sign For Equality volunteer t-shirt For more information about this or other team signature gathering events, contact Neil at liebo76@gmail.com We need 1 million signatures in the next 18 weeks. Let's get thousands this weekend!

CA: Alameda Changes Anti Gay Bullying Lessons Under Pressure from Religious Parents

A San Francisco Bay area school board will use broad lessons against bias to replace a curriculum against bullying gay people that had become a national centerpiece in the opposition to same-sex marriage. The vote by the Alameda Board of Education on Tuesday did little to ease tensions in the island city near Oakland. A lawsuit and threats of recalling school board members accompanied debate over the so-called Lesson 9 curriculum adopted in May to prevent anti-gay bullying. Gay parents in the community wanted their children protected from bullying, while other parents argued that elementary school is too early to talk to students about gay people. The new anti-bullying lessons approved by the board, at the recommendation of School Superintendent Kirsten Vital, will be supplemented by children's books that explicitly address six specific forms of bias, including against gays. Full Story from the AP: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hRm7ZQzVXwOfReFsukHhUIQCdOzgD9CGGI300

Click here for gay marriage resources in California.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Why We Lost Gay Marriage Fights in California & Maine

Should the November 2009 result in Maine -- a 53/47 victory by the forces seeking to overturn marriage equality -- have come as a surprise? After all, No on 1 raised much more money than Yes on 1 did. They out-organized their opponents. They ran a positive, upbeat campaign. And still the result, just like California last year: a loss. This report will examine the reasons behind the Maine loss. Then it will undertake demographic analysis of the results from Maine, California (Proposition 8) and Washington State (Referendum 71) to assess whether there were consistent demographic factors in play. Next, based on the results of the demographic analysis, a simple model will be suggested to estimate probability on a state-by-state basis of marriage equality being adopted at the ballot box. Finally, a going-forward strategy for marriage equality advocates will be proposed. Maine: What Went Wrong? Given the type of campaign marriage equality advocates waged in Maine, and the realities of running such a campaign in a state like Maine, the No on 1 forces did about the best they could have. But close does not count, and a loss is a loss. There are five reasons the No on 1 forces lost Maine. Advocates of marriage equality must re-think what they are doing, or more electoral defeats are forthcoming. However, if they make some adjustments, they will obtain the result they seek, eventually. Full Story from Nolanchart.com: http://www.nolanchart.com/article7109.html

Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

CA: Yes on 8 Targeting Californians Against Hate Founder With Lawsuit

In a lawsuit against state election officials, Proposition 8 supporters have targeted the man who first exposed the financial role the Mormon Church and the National Organization for Marriage played in the referendum’s passage in Nov. 2008. In a subpoena, Yes on 8 and NOM want Fred Karger, founder of Californians Against Hate, to surrender all records associated with his investigation. Karger, who is seeking financial help to mount his legal battle, founded his organization to oppose Prop. 8. He initially went after a San Diego hotel owner who put up $125,000 to help marriage opponents launch a successful petition drive to get the referendum on the ballot and a self-storage company magnate who gave the the pro-Prop 8 campaign $693,000. Full Story from Edge Boston: http://www.edgeboston.com/index.php?ch=news&sc=&sc2=news&sc3=&id=99777

Click here for gay marriage resourcesi in Californi.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

New Report on Gay Marriage Fights in Maine, California

Should the November 2009 result in Maine – a 53/47 victory by the forces seeking to overturn marriage equality – have come as a surprise? After all, No on 1 raised much more money than Yes on 1 did. They out- organized their opponents. They ran a positive, upbeat campaign. And still the result, just like California last year: a loss. This report will examine the reasons behind the Maine loss. Then it will undertake demographic analysis of the results from Maine, California (Proposition 8) and Washington State (Referendum 71) to assess whether there were consistent demographic factors in play. Next, based on the results of the demographic analysis, a simple model will be suggested to estimate probability on a state-by-state basis of marriage equality being adopted at the ballot box. Finally, a going-forward strategy for marriage equality advocates will be proposed. Full Story from Virtual Galt: http://www.virtualgalt.com/mainpages/marriage%20equality%20lessons%20learned.pdf

Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

CA: Courage Campaign Says No Clear Path to Victory in 2010 for Gay Marriage

The effort to get same sex marriage on the California ballot in 2010 took a hit Monday. Rick Jacobs, the leader of the 700,000-member Courage Campaign sent out an email announcing that after spending more than $200,000 on “qualitative research” into the issue in California that “We do not see a path to victory.” So, the Courage Campaign sent a note to its supporters Monday calling “for more research and time to change hearts and minds before returning to the ballot.” In his email, Jacobs said that the research — led by Obama confidante Steve Hildebrand — found that “The biggest hangup people have is that right wing has done a very good job of telling people that somehow children will be affected” should same sex marriage become legal. It worked in both Maine and California, even though top public officials in both places said it would not. Full Story from Cal Coast News: http://calcoastnews.com/2009/12/no-clear-path-to-victory-for-gay-marriage/

Click here for gay marriage resources in California.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

CA: Fresno's Robin McGehee Fights for Gay Marriage

College of the Sequoias speech instructor Robin McGehee sees herself as a product of the civil rights movement in her native South. So she was shocked and disturbed last year when officials at the Fresno Catholic school her son attends forced her to resign as president of the parent-teacher organization. The reason, she says: her public stance against Proposition 8, which bars same-sex marriage and ultimately was passed by voters. McGehee is the openly gay mother of two children, Sebastian, 6, and Jackson, 3, who share two mothers and two fathers. "The priest just called and said because of my public stance on Proposition 8 to resign and not volunteer at the school," said the 36-year-old, a native of Jackson, Miss., who's lived in California since the mid-'90s, teaching at COS since 1999. Full Story from the Visalia Times-Delta: http://www.visaliatimesdelta.com/article/20091123/NEWS01/911230320/1002/COS-instructor-Robin-McGehee-seeks-better-future-for-LGBT-community-as-organizer

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Profile of the Man Behind Gay Marriage Defeats in California & Maine

The most effective man fighting to deny the right of gay marriage in America is Frank Schubert of Sacramento. Schubert ran the successful Yes on Proposition 8 campaign last year, the initiative banning gay marriage in California. This week, when Maine voted to repeal a new law allowing gay marriage, Schubert was again the pivotal organizer. If conventional wisdom on gay marriage inevitability were a balloon, Schubert would be the needle. His win in California galvanized Yes on Prop. 8 believers from the right and left - from black to white to Latino and Asian. His win in Maine halted a tide of momentum for gay marriage in several states. Full Story from the Sacramento Bee: http://www.sacbee.com/breton/story/2313315.html

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

New Poll: 60% of Californians Don't Want to See Gay Marriage on Ballot in 2010

A small majority of California voters supports the right of gay couples to marry, but a much larger portion of voters opposes efforts to place the issue back on the ballot next year, a new Los Angeles Times/USC poll has found. Views on same-sex marriage were sharply polarized based on political party, with 66% of Democrats thinking it should be legal and 71% of Republicans in opposition. Nonpartisan voters were less enthusiastic than Democrats but still backed it, 59%-34%. Overall, 51% of California voters favored marriage rights for same-sex couples and 43% were opposed. Strikingly, however, almost 60% of Californians did not want to revisit the issue in 2010, just one election cycle after it last hit the ballot. Full Story from the LA Times: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2009/11/voters-opposed-new-gay-marriage-ballot-measure-timesusc-poll-finds.html

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in California.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Analysis of the Prop 8 Gay Marriage Case

A federal court case in San Francisco may offer a window into the arguments in favor of marriage equality that could eventually find their way before the U.S. Supreme Court. An Oct. 26 New York Times article reported that the lawyer in the anti-marriage side of the case, which challenges Proposition 8 on the claim that the voter referendum that yanked marriage rights away from Californai’s gay and lesbian families last year violated federal Constitutional protections, was unable to articulate why gays marrying is a threat to stable unions between heterosexuals. Attorney Charles J. Cooper made the claim that there was a state interest in denying gay and lesbian families marriage parity in order to encourage straight couples to marry and have children. But when the judge in the case, Vaughn R. Walker, asked exactly how the domestic affairs of a gay couple could disrupt the martial course of a straight couple’s life, Cooper admitted that he was stumped. Full Story from Edge Boston: http://www.edgeboston.com/index.php?ch=news&sc=&sc2=news&sc3=&id=98269

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in California.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.