Californians' most important vote: NO on "h8"

Hi everyone,
Well of course the most imporant issue to the world right now is that Obama is elected President and McCain/Palin are denied their chance to bring about Armagedon.

Since California is probably in the bag for Obama I titled this blog, Californians' most important vote. For this is a very pressing issue and it is disturbing that proposition 8 has a chance to pass. It is vital everyone gets out to vote No and to spread the word to their friends and colleagues and even their neighbors with whom they may disagree. This is a civil rights issue and one worth standing up for.

The ridiculous proposition would amend the California State Constitution to prevent same sex marriage. Now regardless of how you feel about marrying someone of your own sex, amending the constitution to limit the rights of a portion of our society is plain WRONG! Imagine if a majority decided to vote that Blacks and Whites should not marry. This is Tyranny of the majority and should not be allowed.

Of course the arguments for prop 8 are rooted in hatred and bigotry but they use all sorts of lies and distortions to convince the electorate to vote for this awful law.

This is supposed to be the land of the free, well let people marry who they want. Two consenting adults should be able to marry each other regardless of race, religion, or sex. Period.

Now this morning I heard a radio ad for prop 8 that said this issue is all about school kids and that kids will be taught about gay marriage if this passes. Well as a teacher who has worked in a number of schools I can say this amendment will have little or no effect on that. Kids will be taught about same sex couples regardless. For our job as educators is to teach children to respect diversity. This diversity certainly pertains to different types of families for at all the schools I have worked we have had kids with two moms or two dads and there is no teacher I know who wants those children to feel like their family is wrong or weird. Of course I live in the Bay Area where people are ahead of the curve on this basic human right issue. But nonetheless teachers need to create safe learning environments for their students and this means teaching students to respect each other in all their wonderful differences.

In school we talk about kids having two moms or two dads, we do not get into the details of whether or not the parents are legally married. We do not discuss what would happen if one of them died and the other could not have legal custody of their child or if one was sick whether or not they could be with them in the hospital and make legal decisions regarding medical treatment. These are rights that laws like Prop 8 could take away, which is one of the reasons to vote it down.

Even if you are against all this, do really want to start a precedent of allowing the majority of voters to amend the constitution to limit the rights of minorities in this country? Amendments to the constitution have a history of granting people rights, not taking them away.

For this reason alone proposition 8 must fail.

This is a human and civil rights issue and everyone needs to get out and vote!

Thanks,

Danny