The Big Lie of “Yes on 8”

From the NAACP Legal Defense Fund's online journal:

I am celebrating Barack Obama’s election as president. I also rejoice because people of every race and every ethnicity and every socio-economic class and every sexual orientation came together to make his presidency possible. But here in California the promise and vision of President–elect Obama’s campaign has been marred by the passage of Proposition 8.

Sadly, the lies and vitriol of the “Yes on 8” campaign held sway over California voters. The “Yes on 8” campaign made it seem as if this was election was about religious beliefs and about schools. But nothing could be further from the truth.

The big lie told to the voters of California is that churches would have to officiate at marriages for gay men and lesbians and that they would lose their tax-exempt status. NOT TRUE. In fact, the California Supreme Court, on page 117 of its historic ruling last May, affirmed the right of religious organizations to follow and uphold their religious beliefs. In California, as long as we still must get a license to marry, then we all must be treated fairly and equally under the law. There must be a separation of church and state.

Yet a majority has voted away the rights of the minority. This is always problematic. What would have happened if the voters had voted on whether people of color could marry whites in this country?

I have been particularly pained by the instant analysis that claims that African-Americans are responsible for the passage of Proposition 8. Again, another big lie repeated and repeated often by the “Yes on 8” campaign in a continuous effort to divide minority groups. The vote for Proposition 8 came from many different segments of the population and in truth the “No on 8” campaign wasn’t able to combat their lies.

I have been deeply saddened by the racism that has emerged from the GLBT community. For this I am deeply sorry, and I am working diligently to expose those who would spread such calumnies.

The truth about the GLBT community is that it is not just a white world. It is very diverse—black and brown, Asian Pacific Islander, Christian and Jew, Buddhist and Muslim, rich, middle class and those who live deep in poverty, old and young, couples, singles and families with children. We have so many issues of concern in common with the African-Americans and other minority groups.

I hope in the days and months ahead that the example set by President-elect Obama’s campaign—a great coming together—will be one that the GLBT and African-American communities can work towards so that we can know each other, and know each other’s hearts.

It will take work, but I hope we can work together. Then, this Thanksgiving can be the beginning of a new era in which all can reap a bountiful harvest in a new America.

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Rabbi Denise L. Eger is the founding rabbi of Congregation Kol Ami in West Hollywood, CA. She has been a leader in the battle against Proposition 8. She is Vice-President of the Board of Rabbis of Southern California that opposed Proposition 8.

What I did today ...

Yum, Yum!
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Deja vu all over again

From "The Wild Wordsmith of Wasila" posted on Dick Cavett's blog on November 14th:

My concern has been the atrocities there in Darfur and the relevance to me with that issue as we spoke about Africa and some of the countries there that were kind of the people succumbing to the dictators and the corruption of some collapsed governments on the continent, the relevance was Alaska’s investment in Darfur with some of our permanent fund dollars.

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I was trying to figure out why reading these words of wisdom from Waslia elicited a bit of deja vu ... and then I remembered this one:

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I personally believe that U.S. Americans are unable to do so because, uh, some people out there in our nation don't have maps, and, uh, I believe that our education like such as in South Africa and, uh, the Iraq everywhere like, such as and I believe that they should, our education over here in the U.S. should help the U.S., er, should help South Africa and should help the Iraq and the Asian countries, so we will be able to build up our future for our children.

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Okay ... enough with the fun with deja vu. Back to baking pecan pies.

'Twas the day before Thanksgiving ...

... and all through the house
There was grace in action --
Thanks be to God!
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Grace in Action is the theme of this year's Stewardship Campaign at All Saints Church. Part of telling the stories of that grace in action in and through the ministries at All Saints has been a series of short video witnesses ... everything from our youth group to the prayer shawl ministry to the "Borderlinks" program.
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You can read more about the campaign here ... but what I wanted to post on this Day-Before-Thanksgiving was the video witness that went out to the parish yesterday ... highlighting our witness for marriage equality in California in general and my fabulous All Saints clergy colleagues in particular.
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So click here to view the video ... and join me in giving thanks for "grace in action" -- and for colleagues who not only "get it" ... but who do something about it!

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("Happy Turkey to all, and to all a goodnight!")
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Talking Turkey for Thanksgiving

Am about to head out "over the river and through the hills" to my brother's for Thanksgiving. But before I do, wanted to share with you this great piece that came to me from my friend and colleague, Rabbi Denise Eger -- who is one of the things I'm most thankful for this year!

The Great Thanksgiving Conversation:
Let’s talk all the way through the Holidays.

This Thanksgiving many of us will be leaving our families of choice and spending time with our families of origin. At these dinner tables thousands of conversations will be had. As you are thinking about the conversation around your family dinner table this Thanksgiving and Holiday Season, it is a great opportunity to talk to them about human rights and equality for members of the family who are LGBT. Many of us will encounter “mixed” family tables – with family members who voted on both sides of Prop 8.

Inevitably talk will turn to events of this important election, including the meaning of the passage of Proposition 8 in California.

Become a community organizer and help educate your family on marriage equality and the truth about Prop 8. This is one social justice activity you can engage in that will help all of us in the future, whether the courts overturn Prop 8 or we face another ballot measure.Proposition 8, and its approval, make it lawful to discriminate in California and is just the beginning. It will have serious implications for minorities around our country.

It is important that we continue the conversation, especially with our friends and family in to win the hearts and minds of our friends/family. Many of them will likely use the same arguments that have been used since the election - that they like their gay/lesbian friends but voted for Proposition 8 because their faith/tradition told them to do so.

We are encouraging you to have a conversation with your friends and family this Thanksgiving and throughout the holiday season. In order to get the conversation started we have included some “conversation starters” as well as some facts to counter some of the arguments that are being used in defense of passing Proposition 8 in California.

Here are the key messages that confused and convinced good Californians to vote YES on 8, and the truth about them:

1. YES ON 8 MESSAGE: “Without Proposition 8, Churches would be forced to marry gay people even if it conflicts with their ideas, and they could lose their non-profit status.”

Proposition 8 unfairly blurred the boundaries between the separation of church and state, and the Yes on 8 Campaign outright lied when it said that churches would be forced to officiate at the marriage of gay men or lesbians. In fact, page 117 of the Supreme Court’s original decision last May guaranteed protections for churches to follow their faith’s teaching on the matter and to NOT officiate if that is their teaching. The YES on 8 campaign further blurred the boundary between church and state when it said that it would cause churches to lose their non-profit status. Nothing could be further from the truth. Churches would still be protected as affirmed again by the Supreme Court.The misinformation and outright lies of the Mormon and Catholic and Evangelic Christians communities caused confusion and pain among many. The state constitution should never promote one religion over another.

2. YES ON 8 MESSAGE: “Only the church can say who is married.”

This is absolutely false. As long as couples must get a marriage license from the state for their marriage to be recognized—then you can’t deny citizens from equality. The state issues licenses and you do not have to go to a rabbi, priest or minister or imam to get married. As long as there is civil marriage then it must be open to everyone. It is discrimination to do otherwise.

3. YES ON 8 MESSAGE: “Gay people don’t have civil right; they belong to African Americans.”

In America we have fought for equality for all citizens regardless of race, creed or color and in California that equality is extended to those of different sexual orientation. We have the equal protection clause that says all groups must be treated equally under the law. We are sensitive to the particular history and struggle – and sense of ownership that African Americans have over the phrase “civil rights”. However, they are called “civil rights”, “equal rights,” or “human rights” -- this bundle of rights confers dignity to all people, including gay people. Even those who go to church can understand the phrase, “Love your neighbor as yourself”. The constitution should not be used to deny or retract rights, and that is what Prop 8 did. If you start with gay people—who will be next? Blacks? Latinos? Jews? Blond haired people? Those without a college degree? Catholic?Prop 8 crossed a dangerous line by imposing the tyranny of the barely-a-majority on one group.

4. YES ON 8 MESSAGE: “Why do you need to use the term marriage? Isn’t domestic partnership or civil unions good enough?”

Separate but equal is never good enough. It didn’t work before in the United States with drinking fountains or education or in the Jim Crow era of South Africa. Marriage holds unique and special dignity for the couple and their children. Our society is not built on civil unions but is built on the idea of marriage which takes two unrelated people and makes them next of kin. There are differences in domestic partnership and marriage. The most notable difference is in the reactions of others. Everyone understands when a couple says they are married. Most do not understand when you say your partner, they misinterpret regularly. Also there is a profound difference for those who are married. Their families are accorded the proper dignity and respect in the world and there are some benefits from one’s employer that are available to married spouses that are not available to domestic partners.

5. YES on 8 MESSAGE: “The people had their say and the vote of the people should be honored.”

It is never okay for the majority to impose its will if it eliminates the rights of a minority. Our constitution and the judiciary exist to protect the minority voice from the tyranny of the majority. This is not an “activist” court. This is a conservative court – a majority is Republican -- that interpreted the Constitution and in May of 2008 declared that gay and lesbian people were protected by the equal protection clause. Now the legal case before the Supreme Court will examine whether or not the Prop 8 vote, garnered through an expensive campaign of lies and misinformation, was proper. There have been other instances in California when a ballot initiative was declared improper and/or unconstitutional including Prop. 187 (that would have denied illegal immigrants services).

6. POST-ELECTION MESSAGE: “Gay people should just get over it. It’s just not a big deal.”

One can never get over completely the wounds of oppression and discrimination. The passage of Proposition 8 hurt gay people in California – and lots of their straight friends and family, too. For a few short months gay people knew full and complete marriage equality as never before. 18,000 gay and lesbian couples got legally married. And then in an instant that equality was taken away. This is a deep wound. When justice and equality are denied, people are moved to express their cry for freedom through their first amendment rights to free speech, through protest. Engaging in peaceful rallies and marches to voice our concern is an American tradition, and helps lead to change.

These talking points ought to help you move our cause forward in your family.

Here are some additional actions you might want to take:
• Think about wearing a button that states how many months/years you and your partner have been together.
• Keep your Vote NO on Prop 8 bumper sticker on your car
• (Re)Introduce your partner as your husband/wife
• Talk about a rally or your personal participation in the No on Prop 8 campaign
• Take some wedding cake home for desert
• Take pictures to share of your family
• Ask what they think about what California did with the passing of Proposition 8
• Talk about a wedding (same-sex or opposite-sex) that your attended over the summer

We wish you a very Happy Thanksgiving….Keep the conversation going through the Holidays!
Rabbi Denise L. Eger
Rev. Neil Thomas
Torie Osborn
Rodney Scott
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Bravo, Missouri!

Lisa Fox, from the Diocese of Missouri, offers the following good news (on her blog "My Manner of Life") from the recently completed Diocesan Convention:

Many you know there is s national move afoot to get dioceses on board to repudiate B033 and apologize for its effects, to ask General Convention to affirm same-sex-blessings, and to re-open the door to LBGT candidates to the episcopate. Some brave souls decided to try to get the Diocese of Missouri "on the record" supporting those initiatives, and ... all of them passed – all of them! – all four of them.

Yes, everyone of them. Tonight, my head is reeling that all of them passed – and passed by such a wide majority that we didn't even have to count the votes. They all passed overwhelmingly. Overwhelmingly. In this conservative/moderate diocese. In this red state. My head is spinning.

Thanks for the good news report, Lisa! And for those wondering what OTHER good things are going on around the Episcopal Church, keep an eye on Be It Resolved ... the Integrity site tracking diocesan resolutions as we head toward General Convention.

Remember -- the harvest is plentiful and the laborers may be few but they're doing AMAZING work on behalf of the inclusive Gospel. Let's take a moment today to rejoice and be glad in it!
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Christ the King

"Who IS this King of Glory?"
[revisiting CTK Sunday 2004]

Anyone who thinks Southern California doesn’t have seasons isn’t paying attention. Our seasonal shifts may not be as dramatic as—say North Carolina or New York, but since I’m actually FROM here the autumn signs and symbols we see all around us this morning feel like fall to me! The trees with their brilliant orange and yellow leaves along with bright blue skies, cooler temperatures, shorter days and (perhaps the most locally telling of all the year-end-portents) – the banners advertising Rose Parade bleacher seating springing up all over town: signs of the season, Pasadena-style.

Another sign of the season—Episcopal-style—are the lessons appointed for this last Sunday after Pentecost: which is the last Sunday of our church year. Today, as we end one church year and look forward to a new year ahead, our focus is not yet on the birth of Jesus the baby; rather our lessons and hymns call us to consider the Reign of Christ the King.

Now there are any number of reasons the language of kingship can be problematic for us as 21st century Christians: the gender thing and the patriarchy problem for starters—not to mention the allergy we Americans have historically had to monarchies in general (with the notable exception of our seemingly insatiable appetite for the latest goings on in the British Royal Family.) But no matter how we try to work around it, claiming Christ the King— Christ AS King—is not only part of our historic tradition, I believe it is a critical aspect of our prophetic future.



Read the rest here ...

On this day ...

November 22, 1963

For those of us old enough to remember, it's one of those days that everybody remembers "where they were when they heard ..."

In other news ...

Clinton-Obama Détente:
From Top Rival to Top Aide

from today's NYT feature: The reality at the end of the day was, whether it was Iran or health care or some of these other issues, they were always fighting big battles over small differences [during the primary campaign.]

The courts and Prop. 8 ...

... a November 20th Los Angeles Times Editorial:

[Offering a pretty good, concise "Clif Notes" look at the legal issues and precedents tangled up in the Supreme Court challenge of Proposition 8 in California.]

In a recent meeting with The Times' editorial board, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger expressed confidence that the ban would be overturned because the California Supreme Court this year rejected an earlier ban, Proposition 22, as unconstitutional. The governor is being politically sensible but legally naive about this; the arguments against Proposition 8 hang on different precedents, issues and history.

The definition of marriage in the two initiatives is identical: "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California." But Proposition 8 embeds that definition in the state Constitution, and it would defy reason for the court to hold that part of the Constitution is unconstitutional. In challenging the measure, the lawsuits argue that it is not in fact a constitutional amendment, which requires only a simple majority of the popular vote for passage, but rather a constitutional revision, a fundamental change in the Constitution that entails a far more complicated approval process.

The state Supreme Court has never been all that clear on what it considers revision, but it has set the bar high, finding only twice that supposed amendments actually revised the Constitution.

Measures that insert sizable passages on multiple issues seem to fall into the "revision" category; in a 1948 case, the court struck down an amendment that would have added 21,000 words covering various topics to the 55,000-word Constitution.Proposition 8 lies at the opposite end of the spectrum, a mere 14 words that strip one group of people (homosexual couples) of one right (legally recognized marriage).

The California court rejected similar challenges to the death penalty and to Proposition 13, both of which, it ruled, were properly considered amendments, not revisions. And this year, the Oregon Court of Appeals rejected a suit on same-sex marriage much like the current lawsuits -- Oregon's Constitution has similar provisions on revision and equal protection. As a result, the legal challenge to Proposition 8 is generally seen as a long shot.

Yet that doesn't mean the suits are without merit. The California court has indicated that the quality of the change matters, not just its length or breadth. Gay-rights supporters, including the largest cities in the state and dozens of legislators, argue that by stripping a protected group of the right to marry, Proposition 8 nullifies the equal protection provisions of the U.S. and California constitutions.

The Oregon court disagreed, but there is a potentially important difference between the two states: The Oregon Supreme Court has never ruled that marriage is a fundamental right under its state Constitution. The California Supreme Court has.

There are other legal precedents to consider. In 1996, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against a constitutional amendment in Colorado that would have forbidden all laws that protect civil rights for homosexuals. The ban violated the equal protection provisions of the 14th Amendment, the court wrote, by singling out one group to be denied the rights enjoyed by all others.

But there also are differences between the Colorado and California measures. In Colorado, gays and lesbians were denied legal protection against discrimination in housing, employment and other basics of life. The court cited the breadth and basic nature of these rights in its ruling, saying there could be no legitimate state interest in the measure, simply animosity toward one group; in contrast, same-sex marriage is both newer and narrower, though, according to the California high court, an equally basic right.

Although we too will welcome the day that Proposition 8 is consigned to history and the right to same-sex marriage is restored to Californians, we are sorry to see that the court agreed to take the cases directly, rather than letting this issue percolate up through the lower courts. We see no reason for the haste, despite the intensity of emotion roused by the measure's victory. In fact, that very heatedness is a reason for the court to move slowly, allowing it to rule under cooler circumstances.

Similarly, painful though it is to see Proposition 8 take effect, we agree with the court's decision to allow it to stand as law until the court rules. This is a hateful measure, passed after a campaign of misleading scare tactics, but it did pass. Suspending further same-sex marriages while the litigation proceeds will delay the exercise of this fundamental right, but we are a democratic nation and one bound by the rule of law; until voters reconsider or the courts decide otherwise, there is no option but to stop issuing marriage licenses.

Many voters will claim that the courts should have no jurisdiction at all. Just as they did after the California court's May ruling that legalized same-sex marriage, these people will complain about "activist judges" potentially subverting the will of the people. Maybe schools need to strengthen their civics lessons so that future voters will understand that supreme courts specifically are charged with ruling on constitutional questions -- and it is a sacred and historic role of the courts to protect minority rights as enshrined in state and federal constitutions. Indeed, if courts merely existed to ratify the will of majorities, they would add little to our society.

The California Supreme Court could rule either way on whether Proposition 8 amounts to a constitutional revision, but the issue demands its attention.

The court already has found that same-sex marriage is a fundamental right; now it has the opportunity to fulfill its constitutional obligations to guard against the tyranny of the majority and to ensure that elections do not become vehicles of repression.

"No, We DON'T!" -- Reflections on Homophobia & Hope

I’m writing this on the plane home from Washington DC -- where the sense of energy and anticipation of new hopes, new beginnings and new opportunities was positively palpable. The first thing I saw when I got off the plane on Tuesday at Reagan National was the rack of “Yes, We Did!” t-shirts in the airport gift shop -- and the news all week was practically giddy with inauguration, transition team and new administration appointment talk.

Our work with the Human Rights Campaign Religion Council (the meetings I was there to attend) was all about how we – as religious leaders committed to an inclusive legislative agenda – can help move that agenda forward, as we come to the end of eight years of “Don’t Even Think About It” and enter a historic new era of “Yes, We Can!”

And yet.

In California, we face the uphill battle to undo what a multi-million dollar campaign of fear based disinformation did on November 4th when we took a historic step in the other direction of writing discrimination into the state constitution and eliminating the right of same-sex couples to civil marriage by passing, by a narrow margin, Proposition 8.

And what I’m wondering tonight, on this homeward bound flight toward LAX, is if the 2008 California election has not done for systemic homophobia what Hurricane Katrina did for systemic racism -- exposed it to the harsh light of day in a way that it can no longer be either ignored or denied. And I’m wondering if we can’t claim that reality and mobilize around it.

Because here’s the deal: a fear-based campaign doesn’t work unless people think there’s really something to be afraid of. We may think it’s ludicrous to imagine that the institution of marriage which has so far survived Mickey Rooney, Elizabeth Taylor and Britney Spears (not to mention Henry VIII with his six wives and Solomon with his many!) is going to be “threatened” by a few thousand same-sex couples wanting to live happily ever after. But remember, a “phobia” is – by its very definition -- an “irrational” fear: so there’s no point trying to use logic to overcome it.

And it is no more true that only those with “Yes on 8” signs on their lawns are infected with homophobia than it is that only those burning crosses on other people’s lawns are infected with racism. Homophobia is – and continues to be – both an external and internal challenge to liberty and justice for all in this nation. And it is a challenge we must meet head on if we are going to fully live into the promise of “Yes, We Can!”

The first “nudge” I got on this was last week as I watched (yet another) CNN report on the Prop 8 struggle. Toward the end of the interview with Lambda Legal attorney Jennifer Pizer, T.J. Holmes said to her, “should there be more emphasis to maybe change the hearts and minds, instead of changing law?”
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Now don’t get me wrong – I’m all about education and outreach to change hearts and minds – that’s what “Voices of Witness” was about, that’s what our work at Lambeth Conference was about and that’s what our ongoing work and witness toward General Convention in the Episcopal Church is about.
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But if the court deciding Brown v Board of Education had waited until voters "hearts and minds were changed" to believe that African American children “deserved” equal education, then we’d still be looking at segregated schools and I wouldn’t be flying home from Washington DC with three “President Obama” t-shirts in my carry-on!

Barack Obama's election does not mean we’re “done” with racism – not by a long shot. But it took all of it – the courts and the crowds and the legislation and the lawyers and the protests and the persuasion to get us to this historic “Yes, We Did!” moment – and our struggle against homophobia deserves nothing less than that full court press.

And here’s why: Because homophobia isn’t just “out there” – it’s “in here.”

This week, a member of our Integrity Board received an email from a member in her region, saying he did not believe Integrity should be supporting the Prop 8 protests, suggesting that “instead of making a big to-do about it, we should instead prove that we are worthy of marriage.”

She didn’t ask me for a response, but I gave her one anyway:

"What pack of lies we've been told that WE -- citizens of these United States and baptized members of the Body of Christ have to "prove that we are worthy of marriage." Let me put that in theological terms: BULL SHIT!! I'll get back to you when I'm a little less lit about this."

Well, it’s been a week and I’m not less “lit.” But here’s my response today to the idea that we have to “prove we are worthy:”

No, We Don’t

No, We Don’t

No, We Don’t

We do not have to prove that as citizens of these United States we are entitled to anything less than the life, liberty and pursuit of happiness we claim as foundational values for all Americans.

We do not have to prove that as baptized members of the Body of Christ our relationships are any less whole, holy and blessed than those of our heterosexual brothers and sisters.

What we can and will prove, however, is that this attack against our civil rights in California is not just about same-sex marriage that impacts a small percentage of American citizens but about core American values that impact us all.

Here’s how I responded to an emailed question from a USC journalism student asking, “What did you hope to accomplish by participating in the Prop 8 protest rallies on November 15th?”

What we hoped to accomplish was what I believe we DID accomplish: give voice to the righteous indignation of those who see this battle over Proposition 8 as a civil rights struggle with much broader implications than a few thousand same-sex couples who want to live happily ever after.

What we face in the ongoing struggle to combat Proposition 8 are forces willing to abandon historic, foundational principles of equal protection, separation of powers and the sanctity of an independent judiciary in order to achieve their narrow, bigoted, theological goals. I believe it is nothing less than the slippery slope from democracy to theocracy and we are at a defining moment in that struggle as we work together to challenge Proposition 8.

What we accomplished on Saturday, November 15th at the City Hall in Pasadena and in civic centers all over this great nation of ours was the beginning of what I fervently believe will be a new movement reclaiming liberty and justice for all (not just some) as a common, shared, achievable aspiration of the American Dream.

The election of Barack Obama as our 44th president was two huge steps forward toward that goal – Proposition 8 was a disappointing step back. What we accomplished on Saturday was demonstrating our refusal to settle for that step back and to claim for LGBT Americans the same hope our president-elect has called for us ALL to claim and to proclaim.

And we do NOT have to apologize for that. We do NOT have to settle for less than that. And we most certainly do NOT have to “prove” that we deserve equal protection as citizens of these United States.

No, We Don’t.

No, We Don’t.

No, We Don’t.

Remember that “nation conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal?” It’s the nation that had to fight a civil war to decide whether “all men” meant ALL men or just white men. And it wasn’t a fight that ended at Appomattox – that struggle continues today as we combat the systemic racism that has been called “America’s Original Sin.”

It’s the nation that had to decide if “created equal” stopped with men and extended to women – and we know that the struggle to overcome sexism didn’t end with either the Suffragettes or with Steinem but continues to challenge us as a nation at every level of social engagement.

And now we’re engaged in this struggle to decide whether religious bigots have the power to add an asterisk after “created equal” reading “*unless you’re gay or lesbian, bisexual or transgender.”

Our answer to that question as a nation must be:

No, They Don’t!

No, They Don’t!

No, They Don’t!

And what’s our answer to whether or not we can muster the discipline and the determination to continue to move this country forward on that arc of history that bends toward inclusion until liberty and justice for all truly means “all?”

Yes, We Can!

Yes, We Can!

Yes, We Can!

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More fun with video

Here's a link to the Post-Prop 8 Press Conference held at All Saints Church on the Sunday after the election.

YouTube: Issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell on Prop 8

Got the "heads up" from serveral emailers that the good folks at GLAAD had posted Monday's segment from Issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell on YouTube ... check it out!

CA Court to hear challenges to Prop 8

From the Sacramento Bee:

The California Supreme Court agreed Wednesday to consider complaints by opponents of Proposition 8 that it improperly revised the constitution to ban gay marriage.

The court declined to stay its enforcement in the meantime.

Court spokeswoman Lynn Holton said the court asked the parties involved to write briefs arguing three issues:

(1) Is Proposition 8 invalid because it constitutes a revision of, rather than an amendment to, the California Constitution?

(2) Does Proposition 8 violate the separation-of-powers doctrine under the CaliforniaConstitution?

(3) If Proposition 8 is not unconstitutional, what is its effect, if any, on the marriages of same-sex couples performed before the adoption of Proposition 8?

Holton said the court established an expedited briefing schedule.

She said oral argument could be held as early as March 2009.

ALSO SEE:
LA Times
Associated Press

The transcript is finally up from our November 17 CNN HLN gig

Still no luck getting a video clip from CNN but here's the transcript off their site -- so settle back and check it out and see why I said I has a lot more fun that Lou Sheldon did. (Just for the record, my favorite part is where Rev. Sheldon tells our host -- Jane Velez-Mitchell -- that she's "pretty sassy for a reporter." Honest! That's what he said! Check it out ...)

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"Issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell: November 17, 2008" -- CNN HLNews

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: You are looking at exclusive footage shot over the weekend and sent to this show by somebody at these protests. These stunning images take you inside one of the massive protests against California`s Prop 8 that are sweeping across the nation.California`s Proposition 8, which passed on Election Day, removed the right of same-sex couples to marry. Leaders of these protests believe they can spark a nationwide push for gay rights with many calling it a civil rights issue, the likes of which we have not seen since the 1960s.Meantime, a shocker this weekend when comedian and actress Wanda Sykes from the hit show "The New Adventures of Old Christine" said this at one passionate rally.

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(VIDEO CLIP)
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WANDA SYKES, ACTRESS: I don`t really talk about my sexual orientation; I didn`t feel like I had to. I was just living my life and not necessarily in the closet. I was just living my life. Everybody that knows me personally, they know I`m gay, they know, you know. I am proud to be a woman. I am proud to be a black woman. And I am proud to be gay.

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(END VIDEO CLIP)

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: This is an issue that will not and should not go away.

Here to give their views on both sides of this issue is the Chairman of the Traditional Values Coalition, the Reverend Louis Sheldon, who is also the author of the book "The Agenda: The Homosexual Plan to Change America." Robert Jeffress, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Dallas.Both men supporters of Prop 8 and on the other side, the Reverend Susan Russell, senior associate for pastoral life at All Saints Episcopal church in Pasadena, which has performed gay marriages.

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Reverend Russell, let`s start with you. Do you think Prop 8 has now backfired in that it has galvanized gay and gay-friendly Americans like never before and really unified it as a national civil rights movement?

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REV. SUSAN RUSSELL, ALL SAINTS EPISCOPAL CHURCH: I think the hard truth is that many were complacent about their rights, and to see a bare majority here in California take the effort to strip away fundamental rights from Americans is just fundamentally wrong.I think the outrage you are seeing in the streets is precisely what should be happening. And I do believe, I think it`s perhaps the beginning of the end for those who want to write discrimination into our constitution and take civil rights away from gay and lesbian Americans. Its time for them to step up and speak out and that`s what we`re doing.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Reverend Louis Sheldon, these demonstrations haven`t just gone national, they have gone global -- Canada, England, Australia, other European countries also planning demonstrations.If Prop 8 was designed to shatter the gay rights movement, hasn`t it had the opposite effect?

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REV. LOUIS SHELDON, TRADITIONAL VALUES COALITION: Well, in America, you only have two states that allow gay marriage, 48 do not. I believe in the rule of law, and I believe very clearly what we have done -- we went to the Attorney General, we gave him the language we wanted, he gave us a title in summary.We went out and got the signatures and we won. Now, if these people want to be anarchists, and they want disturb --

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Wait, wait -- anarchists?

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SHELDON: Yes.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Demonstration is a very fundamental part --

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SHELDON: No.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: These are not rioters. These are not riots --

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SHELDON: You have not seen the demonstrations that they are doing.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m looking right here.

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SHELDON: In San Francisco, oh no that is only one example. You have not seen what happened in San Francisco --

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: You`re not participating in the demonstration.

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SHELDON: May I speak? You brought me down here and now let me speak and don`t be so rude.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Ok, finish it off, but don`t call it a riot, it isn`t.

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SHELDON: But I`ll do what I will. Don`t you allow me any freedom?

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m telling you not to lie.

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SHELDON: Let me tell you this, that in San Francisco, there is footage, but you won`t show it, where they were beating up people because they are pro-Proposition 8. That -- these are anarchists.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Listen, there are plenty of -- there are plenty of cases where people who happen to be gay have been beaten and even killed -- Matthew Shepherd, for example --

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SHELDON: Listen, I have been under attack in that city --

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: So I don`t think we need to go to the extreme of citing people who have broken the law, because people have broken the law on both sides.

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SHELDON: But you believe in disturbing the law?

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let`s bring in the Robert Jeffress, the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Dallas.Let me ask you this question pastor, because a lot of people who voted yes for Prop 8 say they`re not against gays, they`re just against gay marriage. What is your position on homosexuality?

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PASTOR ROBERT JEFFRESS, FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF DALLAS: Well, I preached the sermon this Sunday why gay is not ok. We had 100 protestors outside of our church. They were very peaceful. But what I said was, from the biblical viewpoint, Jesus said that marriage is between a man and a woman. God made us. God is the one who designed us. He created sex, and in his owner`s manual, the bible, he said that the way sex best works is between a man and a woman and a marriage relationship.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: It`s kind of interesting, because Jesus Christ himself wasn`t married. Let me ask you this, Reverend Russell, if Jesus were here today, what would he say, in your opinion about this whole controversy?

RUSSELL: I think Jesus is here today, and Jesus is here in the body of Christ of those faithful Christians out in the streets saying this is wrong. If Jesus were here today, what he would say is spending $46 million to write discrimination into our constitution has nothing to do with the gospel Jesus came to teach of peace and love and caring for your neighbor. I will defend defend Louis Sheldon`s right to believe anything he wants. He doesn`t have the right to write it into our constitution, and that`s why we`re in the streets of California, and that`s why we`re going to prevail.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Reverend Sheldon --

SHELDON: Yes?

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: I believe that gay marriage should be a right for all Americans. In other words, this should be ok across the country. You have 30 seconds. Change my mind.

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SHELDON: Why did not Jerry Brown, the Attorney General for California, when we submitted the language, tell us this and say this is not constitutional material? He allowed us to go ahead. You cannot go back when the Attorney General, the law enforcement agent of the entire state of California, says green light. Go get your signatures. And when we won, it`s very clear this is nothing but sour grapes.Now, remember, when we lost in May 15th to the Supreme Court overturning Prop 22 --

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right, that`s it, you had your time. Guess what, you didn`t change my mind, but this is an issue that even --

SHELDON: Who can change your mind?

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: -- a former Mormon recognizes is larger than one church`s agenda. Take a listen to this woman from our exclusive footage.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: -- great many gay friends, and I felt as a former Mormon and a resident native of Texas, there`s a lot of people in my friendship circle that are very much on the right wing it was really important for me to speak out and make sure that that group of people heard from me as a straight person who has really nothing to gain from giving gays the right to marry, that this is an issue that`s important to everybody, not just gay people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Pastor Jeffress, there you hear from somebody who is not gay but who is just an American saying, hey, this is a civil rights issue. Isn`t the mark of a movement coalescing when it`s joined by people who don`t necessarily benefit themselves?

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JEFFRESS: Jane, they don`t understand the societal implications. Countries in Scandinavia that have embraced same-sex marriages have seen the rate of heterosexual marriages plummet to their lowest rates, and the result is, children are being born out of wedlock, it`s destabilizing society. Whenever you counterfeit something you devaluate and homosexual marriage is a --

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, I looked around the world, I don`t see the Netherlands as an example of a nation falling apart. I see, you know, there are plenty of areas in this world that are suffering crisis. In Africa, there are kids who don`t even have food to eat.

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JEFFRESS: Jane, 70 percent of the prison population in America today is people who were born out of wedlock. And if marriage is whatever you say it is, if it`s not just a man and a woman, why not a man and three women or four women and a man? You devalue something when you counterfeit it, and it has great societal implications.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, Reverend --

JEFFRESS: And that`s why we need to stay with the traditional definition.By the way, it`s when the Supreme Court upheld in 1885 when it said no legislation is more profitable for society than that which supports marriage between a man and a woman in Murphy versus Ramsey.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well a couple of things. Ok, I`m hearing you, but a couple things. One, I think it`s actually going to hurt California economically, and that`s what various government officials have said. Because all those gay marriages that were going to happen, --

JEFFRESS: Yes.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: -- they`re not going to get those tax dollars in.But I want to ask Reverend Susan Russell, and I`ll get your responses all to the hypocrisy within the movement to stop gay marriage.Look at the Reverend Ted Haggard. He was absolutely adamantine about stopping gay marriage. He was speaking for 30 million Evangelical Christians as the one-time president of the National Evangelical Association. And then he was accused of having a gay relationship himself. And he resigned and he admitted sexual immorality and being a liar and a deceiver. What do you make of that?

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RUSSELL: I think internalized homophobia does really dangerous things to people, and I think what we`re seeing right now, and I applaud those who are coming out of the closet as a result of this fight.I think at the end of the day, what we need to do is absolutely support the sacrament and the sanctity of marriage, but that means all marriages. And we need to look at the values that make up a marriage, not the gender that makes up the couple. And we need to stop letting religious bigots write their theology into our constitution. We need freedom of religion and freedom from religion in this country.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Reverend Sheldon, your response to the Haggard scandal?

SHELDON: Well, there`s no question about it. There are many people that are in the closet, and that I don`t think is the issue at all. I think the issue is that you can be redeemed. I put a word in my book --

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: You`re saying you can unlearn homosexuality, like you can go to a camp and they can make you heterosexual again?

SHELDON: I don`t know what psychological training you had at all, but let me just mention --

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: What psychological training have you had?

SHELDON: I`ve had an awful lot of counseling people.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Were you in therapy?

SHELDON: Yes. Now may I speak?

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Ok.

SHELDON: You get awful sassy as a reporter who`s supposed to be a little bit neutral.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, no this is an opinion show, sir, and you`re giving your opinion and I`m giving mine.

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SHELDON: Yes, so let me just mention to you very clearly that reparative therapy -- the greatest people that are persecuted are those that are delivered from gender identity conflict. It is not a gene. No one has ever found the gene, and even if they did find the gene it wouldn`t make a lot of difference.But they have never found the gene. And that gene says that, you know --

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right, guess what? I think you`ve spoken probably more than anybody else on our panel tonight, so don`t say I haven`t given you a chance to have your say.I think that gay marriage should be a right, and I think that these protests are going to get bigger and bigger. And I think this issue isn`t going anywhere.Thank you, Robert, Louis, Susan, all. Come back, we`ll argue some more in a little bit.

On the road again ...

So I'm in Washington DC ... going to be meeting with interfaith allies on the HRC Religion Council for the next couple of days and attending the Transgender Day of Remembrance observance on Thursday night.

Here's the view outside my window ... Farragut Square ... in the center of the city. I'm heading up to the Nat'l Cathedral in a bit for a lunch meeting and then hoping to get a little down time before we start our work together tonight.

It was a happily uneventful "commute" from L.A. to DC yesterday ... sobering to take off over the L.A. skyline, however and see all the gathered smoke from the recent wildfires. Prayers continue to ascend for all those impacted by the devastation and for all those who stood in harm's way to protect lives and property.

A couple of travel anecdotes to share:

Hustling through the St. Louis airport to make my connecting flight to Washington -- as I walked down the "C Concourse" I spied -- coming directly toward me -- a dapper man in a purple shirt. "My goodness, bishop," I said, "fancy meeting you here!" ... and put out my hand, which he took and shook, smiling. "Yes, yes, good to see you," he said. "I know your face, but your name ..." "Of course, of course," I said. "I'm Susan Russell from the Diocese of Los Angeles." "Oh, of course you are," said (wait for it ...) Jack Iker -- former bishop of the Diocese of Fort Worth. "Godspeed on this next part of your journey," I said. "Thank you," he said. (Here endeth the St. Louis Airport anecdote!)

So then I'm in my seat in the plane, waiting them to close the cabin door and tell us to turn off our cell phones, and I get a call from Janette Williams from the Pasadena Star News wanting comment about a story she's writing about two women who are going to walk from L.A. to San Francisco to protest Prop 8 writing discrimination into our constitution.

Of course I have an opinion on that -- which I give her (some of which ends up in her article published yesterday) -- trying to keep my voice down but how quiet can you BE crammed into seat 22B elbow-to-elbow ... next to the Brooks Brothers guy reading the National Review. Oh well.

==== from the Star News feature:

The Rev. Susan Russell of All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena - which conducted same-sex weddings and hosted pre-election phone banks to drum up opposition to Proposition 8 - said Tuesday that the couple's march is more than just a symbol.

"It's exactly what people of faith should be doing - putting their faith into action ... taking the opportunity to stand up for one of the defining civil rights issues of our time," Russell said. "We hold these women in our prayers, and we think it's exactly the kind of action we'd like to see more of as we continue to battle the effort to write discrimination into our Constitution."

Four legal writs have been filed with the state Supreme Court to overturn Proposition 8, Russell said, but working through the legal system is only one part of the opposition.

"I think everything we do is going to be effective" in fighting Proposition 8, she said. "As this couple takes a symbolic journey for justice, our prayers will move this state and this country."

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Onward to Washington. Getting of the plane at Reagan National I run -- almost literally -- into conservative political commentator Amy Holmes. She's definitely one of those pundits-you-love-to-hate but it still sort of surprises me when you run into these folks "out in the world" standing in line for airport fast food like every other travel weary commuter.

My final report from yesterday's travelogue was being held up in traffic in the cab heading toward the hotel by a presidential motorcade coming out of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue (AKA "The White House"). My very savvy cab driver -- who had already enlightened me on his perspective of Scott McClellan's indictment of the Bush Administration over the Valerie Plame scandal -- said dryly, "Must be taking a break from packing." (Yes, Toto, we TOTALLY aren't in Kansas anymore! :)
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So there you have it. From LaLa Land to Inside the Beltway "an inch at a time."

More later ...

Meanwhile, in Nepal ...

Nepal's highest court confirms full rights for LGBT people

"We have moved from being a marginalised and persecuted lot who were thrown out of homes, schools and jobs to people who have human rights and are now protected by the police, the same people who once harassed us."

A Nepali MP has said his "eyes were filled with tears" when he read the full written decision of the country's Supreme Court on a writ petition from four organisations representing lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and intersex people.

A summary decision was issued in December 2007, when the court issued directive orders to the Nepal government to ensure the right to life according to their own identities and introduce laws providing equal rights to LGBTs and amend all the discriminatory laws.

The final judgement was issued today.

It reiterates that all LGBTs are defined as a "natural person" and their physical growth as well as sexual orientation, gender identity, expression are all part of natural growing process. Thus equal rights, identity and expression must be ensured regardless of their sex at birth.

Read the rest here ... and go ahead and bookmark this one for the next time someone trys the "homosexuality is a western issue" argument.

Monks Return to Mount Calvary

from today's New York Times:

LOS ANGELES — On Tuesday the monks met with their insurance agent.
Like thousands of other residents of Southern California, the seven Benedictine Anglican monks who lived at Mount Calvary Monastery and Retreat House, on a breathtaking ridge 1,250 feet above the Pacific in Montecito, were coming to terms with what they had lost in the fires that have swept across Southern California since Thursday.

Early last Friday, fire consumed most of the complex where the monks had chanted, studied the stars and welcomed guests from around the world. The next afternoon, they returned to survey the damage.

“We were very quiet,” Brother Joseph Brown recalled in a telephone interview Tuesday. “We just looked around. We were in shock.”

By the time the Tea Fire, in Santa Barbara County, was under control, all that remained of the 60-year-old monastery itself were a skeletal archway, a charred iron cross and a large Angelus bell.

Two small artist’s studios near the main building were intact. An icon of Christ that Brother Brown had been painting with pigments made from egg yolk and mineral powder was still on a desk. A cello sat a few feet away, unharmed. In the chaos of wind and fire, a sheriff’s deputy had moved another monk’s telescope outside, where it remained unscathed.

“In the midst of all this destruction,” Brother Brown, 46, said Tuesday, “miracles happened all over the place.”

“The feelings right now are difficult to describe,” he said. “One of the hazards of monasticism throughout the centuries is we become attached to what we have or where we are. This is simply a reminder that what we are called to is not our stuff. This is a cleansing by fire.”

Since the fire, the monks have stayed at St. Mary’s Retreat House, run by Episcopal nuns near the Santa Barbara Mission, as they searched for solace and prepared themselves to help others in the area who were displaced by the blaze.
Brother Brown said the monks, part of the Order of the Holy Cross, spent much of Tuesday meeting with an insurance agent and a contractor to discuss their options. Though the coastal mountains of Montecito were dear to their hearts, he said, they “need time to pray and discern” whether to rebuild there, and if so, how to go about it.

“And we’re like, ‘Hmm, how do we get a hold of Oprah?’ ” he added, speaking of another famous Montecito property owner, Oprah Winfrey, who was not there during the fire but who said on her show last week that she had made a plan to send her staff and dogs to stay at a nearby resort, and that her home was safe.
Residents of mansions and mobile home parks alike found the trappings of their communities devoured by the Tea Fire, the Sayre Fire in Orange County and the Freeway Complex Fire in Los Angeles County.

On Tuesday, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger issued an order waiving fees for those needing to replace driver’s licenses, birth certificates and other documents destroyed in the fires.

The state has spent $75 million responding to the three fires, which burned over 40,000 acres, and destroyed 858 homes, the state Office of Emergency Services said. In Santa Barbara County, the Tea Fire was 100 percent contained, state fire officials said Tuesday.

When orange flames sprouted on a ridge below the wood and adobe buildings Thursday evening, the monks and 25 guests, leaders of local nonprofit groups, had just gathered for dinner. They continued eating for several minutes, Brother Brown said, but as wind-whipped flames grew larger, they decided to evacuate. He and the other monks rose from the table and told their guests it was time to go.

“We very calmly and quietly and efficiently and without great gravity got folks’ stuff out of their rooms,” and packed up their cars. The monks, he said, stayed a bit longer, grabbing what they could.

Brother Nicholas Radelmiller, the monastery’s prior, who has lived there for 18 years, carried a century-old painting of the Virgin of Guadalupe under his arm. Others grabbed two 600-year-old paintings, a cash box, laptops and a change of clothes.

Brother Radelmiller, 68, was the only one to get his habit, a white robe with billowing sleeves. The six-inch-long ebony cross he received at his ordination 38 years ago was tucked into the pocket.

The habit and cross, Brother Brown said, are a monk’s only personal possessions. The fire destroyed antique Spanish furniture, oil paintings, books and cherished photographs, he added, but the loss of their habits and crosses stung most. Even in that, though, he found comfort. “We are stripping away the outward symbols that eternally rest in our hearts,” Brother Brown said.
Brother Radelmiller confessed to being “still somewhat numb about the whole thing, and a little overwhelmed by all the stuff that has to be done.”

“I keep running into little things that I’d missed,” he said, “things I had not realized I’d lost.” He began to cry quietly, then took a breath, saying: “But I really do feel like the most important thing is that we’re all O.K. and together. If they’re memories, I’ll just have to remember them. The most important thing is us.”
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IN RESPONSE: For those who've emailed or commented on "how can we help" here's this update from the Diocese of Los Angeles:

The bishop and staff of the Diocese of Los Angeles have pledged their support in assisting the coordination of fire recovery efforts. Checks, payable to the Treasurer of the Diocese and earmarked "Montecito Fire Recovery," may be sent to the Bishop's Office, 840 Echo Park Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90026.

Me having more fun on CNN HLNews than Lou Sheldon was

Still waiting for a transcript of the segment and maybe a video clip ... stay tuned!
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The show is "Issues With Jane Velez-Mitchell" -- it runs in the 7pm eastern hour on HLNews. The transcript for the Nov 17 show just went up ... click here for a link ... I'll put the trascript for our segment in a separate blog post.

Both sides urge Supreme Court to hear challenges to Prop 8

BREAKING NEWS:
(11-17) 16:42 PST SAN FRANCISCO -- The likelihood of a final California Supreme Court showdown over same-sex marriage increased dramatically Monday when Attorney General Jerry Brown and the pro-Proposition 8 campaign urged the justices to decide whether the voter-approved ballot measure is constitutional.

Both Brown, the state government's top lawyer, and the Protect Marriage campaign organization plan to defend Prop. 8, which would write a ban on same-sex marriage into the state Constitution. In separate filings Monday, the liberal attorney general and the conservative sponsors of the initiative gave similar reasons for asking the court to review lawsuits filed by the measure's opponents.

Read the rest here ... and remember that part about it not being over 'til the fat lady sings!

TIVO Alert: The Saga Continues!

7pm eastern/4pm pacific:
CNN Headline News ISSUES WITH JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL

I'm going up against Lou Sheldon (of Traditional Values Coalition Fame ... ) and Pastor Robert Jeffres from Dallas ... who just preached a sermon entitled "Why Gay Is Not OK" ... on the CNN Headline News ISSUES WITH JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL show about life post-Prop 8.

Prayers invited. ("Film" at Eleven!)

And from the City of Angels ...

Just a couple of pictures that came in last night from the Stop H8 Rally in downtown Los Angeles (thanks, Jim!) ... starting with City Hall sporting a rainbow flag draped there from the observation deck:



"Our boys" decked out in their "Equal Rites: The Episcopal Church Welcomes You" tshirts:

And a peek at the crowd -- estimated at 10,000:

The horrible wildfires devasting so much of the Southern California area are a huge cause of concern and invitation for prayer this morning. They've cancelled the marathon scheduled today for Pasadena because of bad air quality and many homes and lives still in harm's way as the Santa Ana winds continue -- they tell us -- for yet another day. But still, there's hope ...

From the New York Times report on the rally:

In Los Angeles, where wildfires had temporarily grabbed headlines from continuing protests over Proposition 8, Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa addressed a crowd of over 9,000 people in Spanish and English, and seemed to express confidence that the measure, which is being challenged in California courts, would be overturned.

“I’ve come here from the fires because I feel the wind at my back as well,” said the mayor, who arrived at a downtown rally from the fire zone on a helicopter. “It’s the wind of change that has swept the nation. It is the wind of optimism and hope.”

Slide Show from Saturday @ Pasadena City Hall

Photo credit: Susan Russell & Larry Stammer

IMPACT "No on H8" rally in Pasadena CA

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November 15th was "Promote love and equality in your city" day -- organized by the online Impact Community -- all over the country, and here in Pasadena we gathered to do exactly that at the Pasadena City Hall.



Thanks to Scott Boardman for getting the ball rolling, for all those who stepped up to line up speakers, posters, sound tech and publicity -- and especially to Juan, Nathan and Margi from ASC, Hannah from Neighborhood Church and my buddy Douglas Hunter -- Mormon Maverick for Marriage Equality.

Here's the advance party ... getting things together about 10am this morning, ahead of the 10:30 start time:

By 10:30 it was easy to see that we had built it and they had come -- with signs, flags, baby strollers and ready to make some noise for justice!

I only got to snap a few pictures -- several other photographers promised to send me pix and I'll post them as they come in -- but for now here's my favorite sign:

Here's another look at the front of the crowd gathered right in front of the City Hall steps ... (and spread nearly to the corner along the sidewalk ... we had to stay out of the street.)

Finally, here's my colleague Zelda -- pausing to take in the applause as she addressed the crowd with the bullhorn we ended up using. (It was actually very cool ... I should carry one with me all the time just in case a crowd gathers and I think of something to say! :)

Zelda said (among other great things!) "My mama and daddy taught me when I was a little girl that if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck and looks like a duck then it IS a duck. And this duck is called "discrimination" -- and as an African American female believe me, I know it when I see it!"

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Go, Zelda!

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More later. And if you took photos at the rallies in your area, do share. Let's build the witness. Let's keep up the pressure. Let's refuse to be silent. Let's seize this moment and make history out of it. (Click here for slideshow ...)

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With liberty and justice for all?

A very helpful overview in this morning's L.A. Times on where we "are" here in California with the legal challenge to Proposition 8 ...

California Supreme Court ponders challenges to gay-marriage ban

From the Los Angeles Times

Four lawsuits testing Proposition 8 have now been filed. At a Berkeley conference on the high court's role, however, the justices refrain from taking sides.By Maura DolanNovember 15, 2008Reporting from Berkeley — When six of seven members of the California Supreme Court gathered in Berkeley on Friday for a conference on the role of the court, their every facial tic and remark was scrutinized for signs of whether they would vote to overturn Proposition 8.

Topics of discussion included the death penalty and private judging, but the lawyers in the conference room on the UC Berkeley campus grew especially rapt when Justice Kathryn Mickle Werdegar announced discussion of the court's historic May 15 decision that guaranteed "the pre-Proposition 8 right of gays and lesbians to marry."

The court is pondering legal challenges to Proposition 8, which restored the ban on same-sex marriage. While the justices listened to what others had to say about their role in same-sex marriage, another lawsuit was filed before them to overturn the initiative. That legal challenge -- brought by groups including the Asian Pacific American Legal Center, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund -- brings to four the number of lawsuits asking the court to overturn Proposition 8. The court may act on the challenges as early as next week.

Although the conference on the role of the state high court was planned months ago, its topics squarely addressed the heated legal and political questions now swirling around the justices and the fate of same-sex marriage.

Former Gov. Pete Wilson, one of the speakers, said the court should defer to the other branches of government and refrain from making policy on its own.An appellate lawyer on a panel observed the court's obligation "to protect the minority from the tyranny of the majority."And justices from other states warned that voters are increasingly throwing state Supreme Court justices off the bench after heated campaigns by special interest groups.

Pepperdine University Law School Dean Kenneth W. Starr, speaking on a panel that discussed the court's rulings, called same-sex marriage "the defining social issue of our time." The marriage ruling not only was "the biggest blockbuster of this court's term but perhaps the most important decision handed down in the United States by any court," he said.

Starr had opposed same-sex marriage before the court, but he read aloud from the majority opinion in a stirring voice as the justices listened.The 4-3 ruling spoke of the "overarching values of equality and human freedom," the need to protect minorities, the "fundamental right" of marriage, and the importance of giving same-sex unions "equal dignity and respect," he said.

He also read from the dissents, which called marriage an ancient institution and said the court should defer to the will of the people.With the justices only a few feet away, Santa Clara University Law School Professor Gerald Uelmen opined that the court could not overturn Proposition 8 without also admitting that its May 15 decision improperly revised the state Constitution. The lawsuits against Proposition 8 contend that the initiative changed the tenets of the state Constitution and therefore amounted to a revision, which can only be placed on the ballot by a 2/3 vote of the Legislature. Proposition 8 stemmed from a signature campaign.Werdegar, the panel's moderator, frowned and ignored the comment.

Earlier she had said that the state high court must provide independent review when state constitutional issues were at stake, even if it meant overturning a vote of the people. Her remarks dealt with a tax case and had nothing to do with Proposition 8, but reporters scribbled furiously.

Television and radio media cornered Chief Justice Ronald M. George, who wrote the marriage ruling, and repeatedly tried to get him to discuss Proposition 8. He explained over and over again that judges were not permitted to comment on pending cases.While the justices lunched with panelists and the audience, Ohio Chief Justice Thomas J. Moyer warned that special interest groups were increasingly threatening the independence of the judiciary. Six state Supreme Court justices were ousted by voters this year after nasty campaigns by special interests, he said.

Opponents of same-sex marriages have talked of recalling members of the state high court if they overturn Proposition 8. Although George did not refer to those threats, he complained of the "increasingly partisan nature of judicial elections."

"We are keenly aware that we share with other state courts a vulnerability to forces that focus not on impartiality but on whether judges, like officeholders in our sister branches of government, should be responsive to majoritarian, political or special-interest preferences," he said.

“Let no one put asunder”

Reflections on the sanctity of marriage
Zelda Kennedy, Wilma Jakobsen, Abel Lopez, Susan Russell, Ed Bacon

For 140 days -- from June 17th - November 4th -- at All Saints Church in Pasadena the clergy had the extraordinary privilege of presiding at a total of 43 weddings of same-sex couples.

The cover of this week's Saints Alive ... our weekly parish newsletter ... featured our collective reflections about our experiences during that joyful window of opportunity to celebrate marriage equality. Enjoy!

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[Zelda] The call came into my office the day before same-sex marriages were legal in California. The caller was Mel White, who was on a plane returning to Los Angeles from Europe. He would only be in Los Angeles for as long as it would take for him to marry his partner of 27 years, Gary Nixon. He asked if we would do the ceremony since All Saints was their former church home, continues to be their spiritual home base, and because marriage was not legal in his home state. Of course I said, “Yes!” – grateful that because we suspected we might become inundated with requests to perform same-sex marriages, we had already established guidelines to assist us in ministering to couples outside the Diocese of Los Angeles and the state of California.

Little did we know between this first marriage, held on June 18th and the last on November 3rd we would conduct 43 ceremonies - each uniquely different, each divinely blessed and each wonderfully incredible. Although the couples had distinctive relationships, they all had one thing in common, love - loving each other in relationships that ranged from 7 years to as many as 42 years.

[Wilma] The simple privilege of entering into people's lives at a moment when they made their long-term commitment public was profound. When the season started back in June, I was away in South Africa, and part of my trip involved inquiring how my participation in same sex marriages here might or might not affect my status in the Anglican Church of Southern Africa. Though no clear answer emerged, I came back peacefully resolved to marry any couples who asked me to do so, and that I would deal with any consequences, if and when the issue emerged in the future.

Though I missed the excitement of the very first weddings, I was thrilled to be asked to participate in three couple's weddings - with all of whom I had deep and long standing pastoral relationships. Their children participated in the weddings in integral ways, so that we were not only blessing couples but also families. Each time I was so moved by the couples, their families and friends, their support, their joy, their blessing, the goodness and rightness of what it was we were doing.

I believe God has smiled on all these marriages and on us. I believe God cries with us as the passing of Proposition 8 shows us that the politics of fear and exclusion have temporarily triumphed over the politics of love. But this I know - that faith, hope and love always endure, and the greatest of these is love.

[Abel] They were standing just in front of me, ready to say their wedding vows when the sudden mystery of love began to unfold before my eyes. Their promises, their dreams, their hopes, all of their words thoughtfully chosen for the occasion; mastered to summarize the essence of their love and commitment. Then I remembered this quote from Amy Tan: I am like a falling star who has finally found her place next to another in a lovely constellation, where we will sparkle in the heavens forever.

And I asked myself, what can I do, but open myself to that mystery, to that encounter with eternity and feel in the deepest place of my soul that I, simply a priest, am about to minister the sacrament of marriage to two beautiful creatures of God in this vast universe.

[Susan] It is always a deep joy and amazing privilege to be invited into the profound intimacy of two beloveds making their love tangible in vows professed and rings exchanged in the sight of God and of the community gathered. Over the last 140 days, as couples invited us into that holy space with them, their joy was often accompanied by a sense of urgency. And that urgency included a pinch of anxiety labeled “Proposition 8” -- giving the traditional words from the marriage vows, “Those whom God has joined together let no one put asunder” new power.

As we write, the provisional and absentee ballots are still being counted but it looks as though the effort to write discrimination into our constitution will pass. That does not mean it will succeed. Those whom God has joined together remain joined together – in the sight of God and of All Saints Church – as we redouble our efforts to fight for the dignity of every human being and to speak for liberty and justice for all.

And while I am confident we will succeed in the end, I am haunted today by a voice mail I received the day after the election from someone named Jason. “We were getting married next month,” he said voice full of pain, “And now I feel like I want to die. My life has been stolen from me and I just don’t understand it.” My only answer was to stand with Jason in his pain the way we stood with Mel and Gary – and Bear and Susan, and Joe and Joey, Richard and Chris, and all the others in their joy. All Saints’ witness to God’s love made tangible in these marriages and in this struggle is another example of grace in action, as we continue to work with God to turn this human race into the human family it was meant to be.

[Ed] It has never seemed fair that I could legally marry my best friend who is the love of my life, who is a person of the opposite sex, while those who love someone of the same sex cannot marry the love of their lives. That justice issue drove me to say yes to the Rector’s Search Committee in 1995 when they posed the question to me, “If we were chose you as the next rector of All Saints, would you continue our practice of blessing same-sex unions?” Rich Llewellyn and Chris Caldwell were the first same-gender couple I blessed back then. Rich and Chris were among the almost 20 couples I married in this recent historic period between June 17 and November 3, 2008.

Although each of these couples was unique in personality, I nevertheless was deeply moved by the commonalities they shared.

1. “God has made us fall in love, it’s true.” Stevie Wonder. These couples chose to have their marriages take place in the church because they made the “faith connection” between the Love that had overpowered and brought them to this commitment and God, the Author of that Love. They were giving thanks to God for their love and they were giving thanks IN their church where making love tangible is our mission. In fact one couple asked if the Stevie Wonder song could be sung in their service as a way to express this “faith connection.” They had walked the journey of knowing that love is the greatest power in the world, that it overcomes fear, and produces forgiveness and healing, and that it was the dynamic that had brought them to their wedding.

2. “Love is not envious, proud, boastful, rude, or self-serving.” (1 Cor. 13) Each of these couples brought profound emotional maturity to their wedding. They were grown-ups, not doing something impulsively. They had known many “Good Fridays” in their relationship but they had known even more “Easter Sundays.” Their relationships had already been refined of the kind of pettiness and egocentrism that often destroys marriages. Each of us who officiated at these weddings stepped into a universe of grown-up love.

3. “When Ruth and Naomi came to Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of their love.” (Ruth 1: 19) Those wedding guests who gathered as witnesses to these marriages testified in every instance of how the love between those two had spilled over to make those around them have better lives. Many of them have children (in some instances adult children who are making significant contributions to society). All of their relationships had borne spiritual fruitfulness in their wider families, neighborhoods, workplaces, and faith communities.

All of these reasons, and many more, made the past four historic months a season of pastoral liturgies we will never forget. We wanted in this essay to express that these weddings have profoundly ministered to the spiritual journeys of the staff priests of All Saints Church. They have taught us more deeply than ever before that as long as we choose the power of love over fear, God will empower, uphold, and console us to spread the dynamics of God’s house of love throughout the entire human family.

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Sad News

Historic Mount Calvary Retreat House victim of Montecito wild fire
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(Episcopal News, Los Angeles) -- The raging Montecito wildfire has destroyed historic Mount Calvary Retreat House, staff and Santa Barbara County officials have confirmed.The resident brothers, members of the Order of the Holy Cross, and staff are safe following evacuation, said Nancy Bullock, program director for Mount Calvary, speaking by phone from All Saints by-the-Sea Church in Montecito.

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Bullock said that All Saints is currently working to determine if any parishioners have lost homes in the blaze, which has claimed more than 100 residences across 2,500 acres. Bullock's husband, Jeff, is rector of the parish.
Historic Mount Calvary Retreat House, shown here in a file photo, was destroyed by a wildfire that started on November 13.

Bishop J. Jon Bruno, who is in close telephone contact with clergy leaders in the Santa Barbara area, asks the prayers of the diocesan community for all those affected by the fire. The bishop and staff of the Diocese of Los Angeles have pledged their support in assisting the coordination of fire recovery efforts.

Checks, payable to the Treasurer of the Diocese and earmarked "Montecito Fire Recovery" may be sent to the Bishop's Office, 840 Echo Park Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90026.Mount Calvary's prior, the Rev. Nicholas Radelmiller OHC, is leading the brothers and staff in assessing next steps of response to the fire damage.

Bullock said the brothers and staff at Mt. Calvary, were able to leave with some of the hilltop retreat house's valuable art treasures, as well as computer records, "but so much is lost."Mount Calvary staff will assist groups and individuals in seeking alternate locations for upcoming retreats, all of which are now cancelled owing to the fire, Bullock said. The Cathedral Center retreat center in Los Angeles is available to assist this process.

At Santa Barbara's Trinity Church, rector and deanery co-dean Mark Asman is meeting with staff and volunteers to assess the situation and crisis response. Further information will be reported through the Episcopal News email list as soon as it becomes available, Asman said.

Asman said Trinity Church's rectory and parish house were able to accommodate the brothers overnight November 13. St. Mary's Retreat House, an Episcopal Church site near the Santa Barbara Mission, has also extended hospitality, although it was subject to a temporary evacuation November 13.

Calif. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has declared the fire zone a disaster area as fire fighters continue to work to contain the blaze.Mount Calvary Retreat House, with its panoramic ocean views, was founded in 1947 by the Order of the Holy Cross, based in West Park, N.Y.

--Report filed by Bob Williams, canon for community relations, Diocese of Los Angeles.

California's same-sex marriage case affects all of us

It forces us to consider why we have rights.
by Kermit Roosevelt
from the November 14, 2008 Christian Science Monitor

[Philadelphia] What now for California? In May, its Supreme Court announced a right to same-sex marriage. Gays and lesbians rushed to take advantage of the opportunity; by early November, 18,000 such marriages had been performed. But on Nov. 5, they stopped. By a 52-47 percent margin, California voters approved Proposition 8, an amendment to the state constitution prohibiting same-sex marriage.

Immediately, gay rights supporters filed lawsuits asking to overturn the ruling. Critics are calling Proposition 8 an illegal constitutional "revision," fundamentally altering the guarantee of equality – not a more limited "amendment."

This suit raises a serious question: When should a majority have the power to take away a constitutional right granted by a court?

It's a question that forces us to think about why we have constitutional rights in the first place, and why they are enforced by judges. But it is not simply a theoretical puzzle. All of us enjoy constitutional rights, and most of us are at some point in a minority. All of us could be affected.

American constitutional practice has generally been to expand rights over time, both by amendment and by judicial decision. Amendments to the federal Constitution, for example, gave women and minorities the right to vote. Judicial decisions have expanded the constitutional guarantee of equality to protect more and more groups. Some of these decisions remain intensely controversial, but none have been overruled by a federal amendment.

Of course, amending the federal Constitution is difficult. It requires approval by "supermajorities": two-thirds in the House and the Senate and three-quarters of state legislatures. Federal rights cannot be taken away by a simple majority vote.

Because of this requirement, judicial decisions enforcing the federal Constitution's equality guarantee have followed a relatively consistent pattern. At one point in time, a particular practice – say, the racial segregation of public schools or the exclusion of women from the practice of law – is so widely accepted that it seems beyond challenge. Judges are not likely to strike the practice down, and if they did, the backlash might well be strong enough to create a constitutional amendment.

Some time later, the practice becomes controversial. It still enjoys majority support – otherwise it would likely be undone through ordinary lawmaking – but it no longer has the allegiance of a supermajority. It is at this time that judges tend to act in order to protect the freedoms of the minority, striking down the practice as unjustified discrimination. The decision may be intensely controversial. It may even be the target of majority disapproval. But because there is no longer a supermajority, the decision is safe.

As attitudes evolve, the practice comes to seem outrageous. Almost no one, nowadays, would argue for racial segregation of schools or a ban on female lawyers. At this point, the judicial decision is no longer controversial.
If a majority could overrule a judicial decision, the process would frequently be stopped by that majority vote. Judicial interventions against discrimination would just not succeed.

Regardless of where you stand on same-sex marriage, what's troubling for US citizens in the California case is the idea that an equality guarantee could not be effectively enforced against the will of a majority. The point of such a guarantee is precisely to protect minorities from discrimination at the hands of a majority.

It would be somewhat surprising, then, if California allowed judicial decisions enforcing the state equality guarantee to be overruled by a simple majority vote. In fact, as the gay-rights supporters' suit indicates, it is not clear that it does. Under the California constitution, "amendments" can be approved by a simple majority vote.

But "revisions," which make substantial changes, require approval by a supermajority – two-thirds of both houses of the legislature – before being submitted to voters. Supporters framed the same-sex marriage ban as an amendment, when really it has the makings of a revision.

It makes sense to require supermajority support to overrule a judicial decision that grants rights to a minority. It shows that the judges were so out of step with society that they were probably wrong. But a simple majority does not show that, and the constitution would not afford meaningful protection if it could be overruled at the will of the majority.

As the opposition to same-sex marriage in California has shrunk, simple majorities should not be able to reverse decisions made in the name of equality.
This is not an argument that the California court was correct. The battle for public opinion goes on. But letting the court's decision stand against the disapproval of a simple majority is not only sensible, it protects the minority rights of future generations.

Unpopular decisions are the price of constitutional rights.

• Kermit Roosevelt teaches law at the University of Pennsylvania's law school

Prayers Ascending ....

... for those in harm's way as wildfire rages in the Montecito hills above Santa Barbara tonight.
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Dozens of homes have been lost and it appears to be burning perilously close to our OHC retreat center and monastery, Mt. Calvary.
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Keep watch, dear Lord, with those who work, or watch, or weep this night, and give your angels charge over those who sleep.Tend the sick, Lord Christ; give rest to the weary, bless the dying, soothe the suffering, pity the afflicted, shield the joyous; and all for your love's sake. Amen.

One community working together

I was honored to be asked to be a signatory on this "Community Letter" sent out today to members of the LGBT/Allies Community here in Los Angeles ...

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November 13, 2008

Dear Community,

We are on the cusp of a new era as our country has elected its first African-American president, Barack Obama. We hope this unprecedented event will usher in a new chapter in our nation’s history.

This past week has been a difficult time. With the passage of Proposition 8 in California to change the state constitution to eliminate the right to marry, our community has experienced a difficult defeat. We are angry and upset by the passage of Proposition 8 and the betrayal of the promise of equality that has been the hallmark of the Golden State. Yet, we know that this is only a setback in—not the end of—our journey toward full equality for the LGBT community.

It is natural to analyze what went wrong. But in recent days there has been a tendency to assign blame to specific communities, in particular, the African American community. The fact is, 52 percent of all Californians, the vast majority of whom were not African Americans, voted against us. In addition, the most recent analysis of the exit poll that drove much of this speculation determined that it was too small to draw any conclusion on the African American vote, and further polling shows that the margin was much closer than first reported. Most importantly, though, none of this discourse changes the outcome of the vote. It only serves to divide our community and hinder our ability to create a stronger and more diverse coalition to help us overturn Proposition 8 and restore full equality and human rights to LGBT people. It also deflects responsibility from the group that is responsible for this miscarriage of justice: The Yes on 8 campaign. They waged a deceitful and immoral campaign that brought about this violation of our human rights and dignity.

We as a community have come so far. Let’s not lose sight of this. Since Proposition 22 passed eight years ago by 22 percentage points, we have made our case to the people of California. We have talked to our families, co-workers and friends about what true equality looks like. In so doing, we have narrowed the gap substantially since that time. And, in the last week, we have continued to move forward with a great wave of non-violent protest and a strong and powerful legal case put together by some of the keenest legal minds, supported by the governor, our senators and many other elected officials in our state. Moreover, we have seen a great national movement growing in support of equal rights for the LGBT community as a result of our actions in California.

We are hopeful the election of Barack Obama signals a new spirit of collaboration among diverse groups of people. There are many allied communities—straight, African-American, Latino, Asian Pacific Islander, people of faith, and secular people—who are energized to join with us as never before. This is progress! LGBT people are a part of all those communities, and with the support of our straight allies, we know that justice will prevail.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said it best: “The arc of moral justice is long, but it bends toward justice.” Now is the time to come together as one community working together toward human rights and full equality. We are confident that with our growing coalition we will ultimately win this fight.


Sincerely,

Ron Buckmire
Barbara Jordan/Bayard Rustin Coalition

Rea Carey
Executive Director, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force

Jennifer Chrisler
Executive Director, Family Equality Council

Oscar De La O
President & CEO, Bienestar

John Duran
Member, West Hollywood City Council

Rabbi Denise L. Eger
Congregation Kol Ami

Lorri L. Jean
CEO, L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center

Kate Kendell
Executive Director, National Center for Lesbian Rights

Geoff Kors
Executive Director, Equality California

Francine Ramsey
Executive Director, Zuna Institute

Rev. Susan Russell and Rev. Ed Bacon
All Saints Episcopal Church, Pasadena

Rodney Scott
President, Christopher Street West/LA Pride

Joe Solmonese
President, Human Rights Campaign

Rev. Dr. Neil G. Thomas
Metropolitan Community Church/LA

Vallerie D. Wagner
National Black Justice Coalition

Marshall Wong
Co-Chair, API Equality—L.A.

Important Message from HRC's Joe Salmonese

Dear Susan,

Normally, I would wait until Friday to write to you, but with all that's going on right now, I felt it was important to speak to you today.

Our community is facing great challenges in the wake of the outcomes of ballot initiative fights in California, Arizona and Florida. Now, we must decide how to approach the obstacles ahead.

As Martin Luther King wrote in his Letter from a Birmingham Jail: Will we be extremists for hate or will we be extremists for love? Will we be extremists for the preservation of injustice--or will we be extremists for the cause of justice?

On November 4, less than six months after the California Supreme Court ruled that lesbian and gay people are fully equal under the law, a slim majority of voters declared that we are not.

In Arizona and Florida voters also took away rights we had not yet even been granted.

We are angry - and that anger has moved to the streets.

Our rights were stripped. Our love was branded unworthy of the name marriage, though our commitments and responsibilities to each other are worthy of nothing less.

We are determined the world will see we are not an issue; we are families. Many of us are people of faith; many are people of color; our children play with yours; all of us are neighbors.

The Mormon Church played a huge role in the travesty called Proposition 8. In response, there have been protests at churches. The Mormon community faced persecution in its early years. In the wake of Prop 8, I question whether members of that community have forgotten the lessons of their struggle.

Likewise, the Roman Catholic Church disregarded the history of sectarian oppression and pursued a campaign of deceit and misinformation in support of Prop 8 reminiscent of the anti-Catholic movement of the early 1800s.

It is chilling to realize the Catholic and Mormon Churches knew they were telling lies - that marriage equality would require children to learn about homosexuality in school - priests would be required to solemnize marriages of same sex couples - and they lied anyway.

As our community and allies exercise our uniquely American right to protest, I hope we will remember the lessons of the HIV/AIDS protests in the 1980s. We were angry, but strategic; impassioned, but smart. Our actions in the streets will set the tone for the ongoing debate about marriage equality. Let us be motivated by our pain, while we model love and justice.

The fact that 70% of African Americans voted for Prop 8 has been particularly jarring. Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people have depended on the real leadership exerted on our behalf by African American leaders. As the Obamas move to the White House, the African American family is receiving long overdue respect. We, too, strive to have all families supported and valued by society.

We ask ourselves why the community that has endured the most violent and persistent discrimination in our country's history failed to understand our struggle for human rights. The results of the campaign have fueled rage. Yet this is misdirected anger. We obviously failed to communicate to African Americans the interdependence of our struggles.

The question before us now is, will we stray from our own path toward justice, and reduce a human rights movement to tactics of recrimination? How we respond to Prop 8 and defeats in Arizona and Florida will define our success, and say much about who we are.

To my community and allies, I say this: our anger is just; our goal is alive. We must remain worthy of the cause we fight for. Our cause is love; and only through love can we win the freedom to marry. In the streets and over coffee, our message must be consistent. We love our soul mates and our families; we love and respect our neighbors; we expect love and respect in return.

To reverse the outcomes of November 4, we must embrace our passion and anger, and redirect them to tasks that have as yet gone undone.

We must take this election as an occasion to look inward. In our California, Arizona and Florida campaigns, we asked diverse communities to hear our stories and respect our rights. But have we heard the concerns of the people we asked to listen to us? We assert that equal marriage rights are basic human rights. We must also show that our concern for human rights does not end with marriage. We must make clear alliance with those we seek as coalition partners.

As we ask communities of color and religious communities to engage and partner with us, we must demonstrate our commitment to the people and issues they care about. We must show that we will not abandon forty-seven million uninsured once we have domestic partner benefits, and that non-discrimination laws are not enough when legions of children are denied equal opportunity by failing schools, violence, and racism. We must stand with immigrants as they, too, seek to fully realize the American dream.

Our campaigns to beat back discriminatory ballot measures in California, Arizona, Florida and Arkansas failed to help others who have experienced discrimination understand that putting the rights of one minority up for a vote puts everyone's rights at risk. That is a conversation with our neighbors that starts today. I hope I will be better able to communicate with them, not because my argument is sound, but because they will be better able to hear me as we labor together for justice for all.

Now is the time to be constructive with our hurt and disappointment. This weekend, thousands in all 50 states will take to the streets with one common goal in mind—full equality for all—let us not forget that our cause is one of civil respect rooted in justice and fairness. Marchers will call not only for justice for LGBT families, but for an end to all the oppressions that hold our nation back and give the false impression that our differences are more profound than what we have in common. To locate a Join the Impact rally near you, please click here.

During and after the Join the Impact protests, we must all recommit ourselves to confront our neighbors with our love.

I will engage my Mormon, Catholic, and African American neighbors—and will ask them to engage me in their lives. I am ready to listen and act on their behalf while I make my case for their support.

November 4 showed us how much work is left to do, but it also brought out the passion we will need for that work. We must hold on to it, and use it wisely. We seek to live as loving families in peace and equality with our neighbors. We trust in the power of love.

Warmly,
Joe Solmonese
President, Human Rights Campaign

"Film at Eleven"

Local news reports on our day at the Board of Supervisors downtown ... including a nice little soundbite from my All Saints colleague, Zelda Kennedy!

Here's what Channel 4 (NBC) had to say:



And here's a link to the coverage on Channel 2 (CBS)

ACLU/SC Urges Los Angeles County to Join Effort To Overturn Prop. 8

Catherine Lhamon, the Racial Justice Director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, today urged the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to file suit or join an existing lawsuit to overturn Proposition 8. Here is her statement:

Good morning. I am Catherine Lhamon, Racial Justice Director of the ACLU of Southern California. I urge this board to file suit or join an existing suit to challenge the constitutionality of Proposition 8.

The very title of Proposition 8 states its constitutional defect. Its title is, "Eliminates the Right of Same-Sex Couples to Marry." Proposition 8 takes away what our constitution guarantees as a fundamental right. It works a breathtaking diminution of the value of our constitution itself: by allowing voters to completely revise core constitutional principles, Proposition 8 sets a dangerous precedent that all our constitutional protections – the right to free speech, the right to equal protection of the law, and others – exist only for so long as majorities vote yes on them.

If it stands, it will suggest that any fundamental rights can be revoked on a bare majority vote, regardless of what our constitution otherwise guarantees. Our system of checks and balances does not give the voting majority the right to write out of the constitution those core principles enshrined in it. Our system of checks and balances is based on the principle that the constitution sets the baseline for all our most fundamental rights, and a simple majority of voters cannot take those away.

Proposition 8 is unconstitutional and will be overturned in court; this county should be on the right side of history, saying that we will not be part of official discrimination.

As much as I am professionally interested, as Racial Justice Director of the ACLU of Southern California, in ensuring equal opportunity for all people, this issue is also deeply personal for me. My parents married in Washington, D.C., rather than in Virginia, where my mother was raised, because in 1966 Virginia still outlawed interracial marriage. My mother, who is black, could not at that time marry my father, who is white, in her home state.

The United States Supreme Court outlawed race-based marriage restrictions the following year in Loving v. Virginia. I was raised in the shadow of Supreme Court decisions like Loving, and like Brown, that held that equal protection applies to all persons, and that promised a new day of meaningful opportunity for people like me.

If an electorate can, through the tyranny of the majority vote, wipe away such fundamental constitutional protections as the right to equal protection for all persons, then we as a state are returning to the bad old days of institutionalized discrimination that I never thought I would see in my lifetime. I urge this board to do what is right and to work, through a lawsuit, to protect all Californians.

L.A. County Board of Supervisors Vote to Support Prop 8 Challenge

Blurry, taken-with-my-phone picture of the L.A. County Board of Supervisors meeting this morning where my colleague Zelda Kennedy and I spoke to encourage Los Angeles County to join in the lawsuit challenging Proposition 8.

And the good news just in from the L.A. Times is ...THEY DID!

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[LOS ANGELES] The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted this afternoon to join a lawsuit filed by the City of Los Angeles, San Francisco and Santa Clara County challenging the constitutionality of Proposition 8, the anti-gay marriage initiative voters passed by a narrow margin this month.

The vote was carried by the board’s three Democrats: Supervisors Gloria Molina and Zev Yaroslavsky, who proposed the board join the lawsuit, and Supervisor Yvonne B. Burke, who voted in support.

Of the two Republicans, Supervisor Michael Antonovich was out of town, and Supervisor Don Knabe left the meeting just as speakers began.

More than a dozen speakers appeared in support of the board’s vote and opposition to Proposition 8, including Los Angeles City Atty. Rocky Delgadillo, San Francisco City Atty. Dennis Herrera and several gay couples. Both Molina and Yaroslavsky, who have officiated at same-sex wedding ceremonies since California legalized them in June, said they acted out of a sense of duty and personal responsibility.

Yaroslavsky pointed out a couple he married who were among those speaking in support of the vote.

“Some of us may ask why the county supervisors would be involved and get so involved in this issue,” Molina said, citing their responsibility to supply marriage license, uphold the law and “balance the enforcement of Proposition 8 with recognizing the constitutional right of all our citizens.” Molina added, “On a personal note, I am here to say that the passage of Prop. 8 saddened and angered me on various levels.”

Yarolslavsky noted that was “a close call” given how divided the state and county have been on the question of gay marriage. He said that he was not always a supporter of gay marriage (he supported civil unions instead) but said he “was persuaded” by colleagues and his children.

“It’s very important for the County of Los Angeles to be at the table on this,” he said. “It doesn’t hurt anybody. It doesn’t adversely effect anybody else.”

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PS -- The Board Meeting will be televised here in L.A. on KLCS at 10pm -- TOTALLY worth TIVOing for those in the local L.A. area just to hear the great opening statements by the S.F. City Attorney and our ownRocky Delgadillo.

And here's a link to a press release from San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera's office, which includes these quotes from Herrera's opening statement here in Los Angeles this morning:

“No matter what your view of same-sex marriage, the passage of Proposition 8 has pushed California to the brink of a constitutional crisis, and it’s important to understand why. This measure sought to do something that no constitutional amendment has ever done in our history: to strip a fundamental right from a protected class of citizens. In doing so, it did not merely undo a narrowly disfavored Supreme Court decision. Its effect is nowhere near so simple or elegant.

“Rather, it upended a doctrine of separation of powers deeply rooted in our system of governance; it trounced upon the independence of our state’s judiciary; and it eviscerated the most foundational principle of our state’s constitution.

“If allowed to stand, Prop 8 would so devastate the principle of equal protection that it could endanger the fundamental rights of any potential electoral minority — even for protected classes based on race, religion, national origin and gender.

“It would mean that a bare majority of voters could enshrine any manner of discrimination against any unpopular group — and our state constitution would be powerless to disallow it.

“Let us be clear: equal protection of the laws is what separates constitutional democracy from mob rule tyranny. It is a principle reaching back eight centuries to the Magna Carta. And it is what guided the founding of our state and our nation.”

In the news ...

From the L.A. Independent: ( I love it when a reporter actually reports what you said!)
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At the liberal All-Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena, clergy said they will defy the ban on gay marriage and continue to perform wedding ceremonies, which they have been doing for 18 years.“The only difference will be that we will not actually be signing marriage certificates,’’ the Rev. Ed Bacon told the Pasadena Star on Friday.

The newspaper reported that 57 percent of Pasadena voters supported Proposition 8.

“How dare a religious body say that these people are not holy and that their relationships are not holy,’’ Bacon said Sunday. “We know that they are sacred.

“The only way [opponents of gay marriage] could win was to deceive the voters,’’ he said during his Sunday sermon. “Our task is to continue to stand in solidarity with one another with the incredible coalition of communities that has been created through this campaign.’’

“One of the most important things we’re celebrating here today is freedom of religion,’’ said the Rev. Susan Russell. “Because of the separation of church and state, we consider all of our couples married in the sight of God in a way that is completely separate from civil marriage. I think that was the big challenge, the message that didn’t get through as well as it should have during the Proposition 8 campaign."

“Just as God’s blessing is available to us all, so should the blessing of the church be available to couples who find each other, fall in love, want to commit themselves to each other until death do they part,’’ she added. “I think we need to treat those couples equally. We’ve been doing that here for 16 years. And for a brief, shining moment, we had 140 days where we got to treat them equally. We’re going to continue to work very hard to see to it that we get back to that place.’’

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CNN: "We could have talked all night"

Transcript from yesterday's CNN "Issues" Segment on Propostion 8 with Jane Velez- Itchell:

VELEZ MITCHELL: Day five of outrage in California over the gay marriage ban. You just heard movie star Drew Barrymore joining thousands of angry protesters desperate to overturn Prop 8. Even Governor Schwarzenegger said he hoped the state supreme court would overturn the ban.

Reverend Susan Russell of the All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena has been protesting right along with the gay rights supporters.

Reverend Russell, exit polls showed three-quarters of weekly churchgoers voted to ban gay marriage. Now, you are a person of the cloth, and you were fighting to give gays the freedom to marry. Why?

REV. SUSAN RUSSELL, ALL SAINTS EPISCOPAL CHURCH: Absolutely. In a nutshell, I think it`s because, as a person of faith and a patriotic American, I believe in both the freedom of religion and the freedom from religion. And while I`ll defend to my last breath the rights of those who think that marriage should only be between a man and a woman, they don`t have the right to write their theology into our constitution. And because people of faith have been so much on the side of promoting bigotry and exclusion regarding gay and lesbian people, I think it`s critical that people of faith, with another perspective, stand up and speak out now, and that`s what we`re doing.

VELEZ MITCHELL: Why does the Mormon Church and its members care what gays do in terms of marriage or in the bedroom?

RUSSELL: You know, I`d encourage you to get a Mormon on and ask them, because it boggles my mind. We married 43 couples at All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena between June 17 and November 4. And I guarantee you, there`s not a single one of those holy, wonderful marriages who`s a threat to any heterosexual marriage.

VELEZ MITCHELL: How would you describe those marriages? Because I understand you performed about a dozen yourself. [note: actually it was seven] So what would you tell those who want to ban it about those marriages?

RUSSELL: You know, I would say at this point, with my four clergy colleagues who`ve had the privilege of doing these weddings, we were invited into holy moments with couples. Some have been together as long as 30 and 40 years, against tremendous odds. And finally, get the opportunity to hear those words, "in the name of the Holy Spirit and by virtue of the power invested in me in the state of California ..." It`s just wrong to take those rights away from people who love each other and want to live together until death do them part.

VELEZ MITCHELL: Speaking of California, Governor Schwarzenegger says now he hopes that the state supreme court overturns Prop 8, but he actually rejected same-sex marriage legislation, so he`s kind of had a change of heart. Do you congratulate him or do you say, "Hey, you`re part of the whole problem, because if you hadn`t rejected the legislation, we wouldn`t be here"?

RUSSELL: It is a both/and. Absolutely. I think it`s never too late for the Holy Spirit to change people`s hearts and minds, and we`re thrilled to have Arnold on board. [note: and yes, I should have been more respectful and referred to him as "the Governor." mea culpa] And I think that we need to come together as fair-minded Californians, across faith and denomination and political, and all kinds of other lines, and say that writing discrimination into the constitution is just plain wrong. We need to fix it and we need to move on.

The segment you just showed about the economic challenges we`re facing -- if we want to support family values, we need to support families who don`t have money for health care or food for their children. We cannot afford any more to be distracted...

VELEZ MITCHELL: Oh, yes.

RUSSELL: ... by trying to take rights away from a few gay and lesbian couples who want to live together, happily ever after.

VELEZ MITCHELL: I could talk to you all night but, unfortunately, we`re out of time. It could have a huge economic impact on California, as well.

RUSSELL: Absolutely.

VELEZ MITCHELL: Thank you so much. Please come back and join us.

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Keith Olbermann on "The Sanctity of Marriage: A Question of Love"

Everybody said "you've got to see this one" ... and they were right!

Quote of the Day

From a November 7, 2008 article in The New York Times:

"Mr. Obama is coordinating the Congressional Democrats behind the scenes on the stimulus plans, which would include more jobless benefits, food stamps, aid to financially strapped states and cities, and spending for infrastructure projects that keep people at work. His chief liaison has been Mr. Emmanuel, who said in an interview:

"You don't ever want a crisis to go to waste; it's an opportunity to do important things that you would otherwise avoid."

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That'll preach!

Veteran's Day 2008

"On this Veterans Day, bless all those men and women who, for devotion to their country and to the common good have offered themselves in service to our nation."
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I'm remembering today sitting in the bleachers in South Carolina hearing my son and his boot camp colleagues swear to "defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic."
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Today I give thanks for ALL the brave men and women who have committed themselves to that task on behalf of all that makes America great -- and I give thanks as well for those who work for peace AND for those who this very day will march in the streets to defend that same constitution from those who would amend it to discriminate rather than liberate.
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God bless ALL who strive to make this nation a nation of liberty and justice for ALL!

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California Constitution 101

So here's the deal, boys and girls:

Proposition 8 attempts to change our fundamental law by means of an initiative amendment that, on a simple majority vote, threatens all of our fundamental constitutional rights – including the right to freedom of religion.

Article XVIII of the California Constitution sets up different procedures for important “revisions” of the Constitution’s fundamental law, on the one hand, and relatively minor “amendments” on the other.

Changes that affect core aspects of our constitutional government are “revisions” that require passage either by two-thirds majorities in both houses of the legislature plus submission to the people, or a full-blown constitutional convention.

An “amendment,” on the other hand, involves a relatively minor “addition or change within the lines of the original instrument as will effect an improvement, or better carry out the purpose for which it was framed.” Livermore v. Waite (1894) 102 Cal. 113, 118-19.

Nothing could be more fundamental to our constitutional government than equal protection of the law.

A change to the Constitution that deprives a discreet segment of the population of the right to equal protection of the law in order to take away a further fundamental right (here, the right to marry) cannot be characterized a simple “addition or change within the lines of the original instrument.” It is a radical, fundamental abrogation of a core principle of our constitutional law.

It follows, then, that Proposition 8 is void. Because if Proposition 8 were upheld, setting a precedent that fundamental rights may indeed be deleted on the basis of a simple majority vote, then there is no principled limitation on what other rights might be taken away by initiative amendments. Not even fundamental constitutional protections of religious liberty would be safe.

Class dismissed.

From today's mail ...

Okay ... it's been a busy day in the All Saints Fields of the Lord ... LOTS of mail (as you might imagine!) which I'm trying to plow through before heading off to the CNN Studio to do a segment for Headline News (4:20 Pacific/7:20 Eastern) on Proposition 8 here in California in specific and Marriage Equality in general. (Tune in if you've got 4 minutes to spare! :)

In the meantime, here's a little "welcome to my world" in the mail box department:

I just read a CNN article in which Rev Ed Bacon was quoted as saying that the Church’s opposition to Gay Marriage was embarrassing. As a religious leader, Rev. Bacon should go back to his bible and read what the Inerrant Word of The Lord God of the Universe has to say on the matter. Throughout the scriptures homosexuality is SPECIFICALLY forbidden. It is not a civil rights issue. It is a specific moral issue that anyone versed in the Holy Word of God should not condone.

Please see the following portions of scripture. Jesus himself, while on earth spoke DIRECTLY against Homosexuality.

Please, before speaking about a subject, especially to a national who’s media is doing everything in its power to undermine the right teaching of the Word of God, Read the scripture, Pray and find out the Truth.

Genesis 2:19-25
Leviticus 18:22
Romans 1:26-27
1 Corinthians 6:8-10
1 Timothy 9-10

"Like Jesus said directly in Genesis" ... yep -- that's what we're up against.

On the other hand, mail is running about 3-to-1 in the supportive direction ... and notes like this make it all worth it:

Thank you for your public support of civil equality for gays.

I'm one of the 44,000 who married this summer, the first male couple in Humboldt County to marry. I've been with my man for fifteen years now. So much of the news these days is filled with anger and hate about this issue that I am frankly overwhelmed. It's hard not to feel as if every other person in California hates me. I read online that, during a protest this weekend in LA, a man who supported Prop 8 held up a sign that read, "God does not love you just as you are."

Christians like him are the reason I left the church.

I was angry for a long time. I'm not angry anymore, but I am weary. Gays complain often that they don't hear voices like yours, that they don't hear the church supporting them. I saw the article in the LA Times that mentioned you and I wanted you to know that I heard you.

La lucha continua -- The struggle continues! Onward and upward!

From Skeptical Brotha:

proposition 8: a triumph of bigotry

[thanks to Elizabeth Kaeton for pointing me to this blog post from "Skeptical Brotha ...]

As some of you know, one of Skeptical Brotha’s longtime contributors has posted that he succumed to the cacophony of lies, hatred, and fear peddled by the homophobic religious right, and voted to ban same sex marriage in California. In so doing, he defecated on the legacy of many gay and lesbian people who fought for the rights of African Americans and similarly situated people of color for full equality in this country.

Without community organizers like Bayard Rustin, a gay black man who traveled to India to study and bring back the nonviolent tactics of Mahatma Ghandhi, the civil rights movement would have suffered in this country. The remarkable thing about the multi-talented Rustin is that he was always upfront about his sexuality, he didn’t hide who he was from anybody.


For a man born nearly one hundred years ago in 1912, that little factoid is a big honkin’ deal. In addition to his civil rights activism and his methodical planning of the 1963 March on Washington, he was also a dedicated labor organizer. You remember the March on Washington, right? I believe Dr. King said somethin’ about a dream–a dream that his only living sibling has said has now been realized with the election of Barack Obama.

The late Mrs. Coretta Scott King was clear in her support for equal rights for all:

I still hear people say that I should not be talking about the rights of lesbian and gay people and I should stick to the issue of racial justice… But I hasten to remind them that Martin Luther King, Jr., said, ‘Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere’ … I appeal to everyone who believes in Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream to make room at the table of brotherhood and sisterhood for lesbian and gay people.”

“…Gays and lesbians stood up for civil rights in Montgomery, Selma, in Albany, Georgia, and St. Augustine, Florida, and many other campaigns of the Civil Rights Movement. Many of these courageous men and women were fighting for my freedom at a time when they could find few voices for their own, and I salute their contributions.

…Gay and lesbian people have families, and their families should have legal protection, whether by marriage or civil union. A constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriages is a form of gay bashing, and it would do nothing at all to protect traditional marriages.”

If the First Lady of the Civil Rights Movement could be for marriage equality, what is your problem?

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KTLA Video report from yesterday @ All Saints

This is my favorite of the news reports we saw on yesterday because Lydia Wilkins gets the last word!

In other news ...

Governor Schwarzenegger tells backers of gay marriage: Don't give up

From the same L.A. Times article that included our All Saints press event today.

The governor expresses hope that Proposition 8 would be overturned as protesters continue to march outside churches across California.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger today expressed hope that the California Supreme Court would overturn Proposition 8, the ballot initiative that outlawed same-sex marriage. He also predicted that the 18,000 gay and lesbian couples who have already married would not be affected by the initiative.

"It's unfortunate, obviously, but it's not the end," Schwarzenegger said in an interview on CNN this morning. "I think that we will again maybe undo that, if the court is willing to do that, and then move forward from there and again lead in that area."

With his favorable comments toward gay marriage, the governor's thinking appears to have evolved on the issue.In past statements, he has said he personally believes marriage should be between a man and a woman and has rejected legislation authorizing same-sex marriage. Yet he has also said he would not care if same-sex marriage were legal, saying he believed that such an important societal issue should be determined by the voters or the courts.
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Following that position, he publicly opposed Proposition 8, which amends the state Constitution to declare that "only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California."

Today, Schwarzenegger urged backers of gay marriage to follow the lesson he learned as a bodybuilder trying to lift weights that were too heavy for him at first. "I learned that you should never ever give up. . . . They should never give up. They should be on it and on it until they get it done."

Today at All Saints Church in Pasadena ...

It was a big post-election Sunday at All Saints Church ... and some of the local media stopped by to check it out:

They were in church to hear the rector preach a kick-butt sermon -- "Amos, Our President-elect and Us" -- which I'll link up as soon as I get a text and/or video.

But in the meantime, here are a couple of quotes:

[On Election Day] millions of people both here and across the globe celebrated in homes and in the streets. Strangers embraced and cried as it if were New Year's Eve. It was New Year's -- the beginning of a new day. It is an event which will be celebrated in history forever because of it authentic revolutionary significance.

I speak to you now from my heart. Tuesday's election was nothing short of a peaceful, orderly and constitutional overthrow of a tyrannical, violent and unjust government.
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But the electorate did not say No to enough evil and bigotry on Tuesday -- especially here in California. The evil of discrimination against our lesbian sisters and gay brothers is still alive and well in the passage of Proposition 8.

At All Saints Church we will continue to work passionately and tirelessly for equality, freedom and justice for all. We will continue to bless same-gender unions here until we can once again legally celebrate same-gender marriages. We will fight to make sure that although in this election Proposition 8 passed it will not succeed.

And then we went out onto the lawn for a press conference ... introduced by yours truly:

Which included statements by the rector (surrounded by couples who were married during the 140 days of marriage equality here in California between June 17 & November 4th) ...

By Abel Lopez, who used his first-ever vote as a new American citizen to vote against discrimination and Proposition 8 ...

And Senior Associate for Pastoral Care, Zelda Kennedy, who had primary responsibility for the pre-marital preparation and liturgical logistics for our 43 happily-ever-after couples ...

After our statements, we "let them eat cake" ... wedding cake, that is -- as we had a traditional wedding cake moment in celebration of the traditional values that make up the marriages we are determined to protect.

The media loved it ...

... and so did this satisfied wedding cake eater!

Afterwards there were more interviews ...

... including this KTLA moment with Lydia Wilkins ... who had LOTS to say about why Jesus loves everybody equally, why she thinks gay marriage is just fine, thank you very much and -- oh, by the way -- did she remember to tell you that her 105th birthday is coming up in January??

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Just another day in paradise -- All Saints Pasadena style!

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Tracking the News Coverage:

KTLA (Channel 5) (Includes a quote from 104-year old Lydia Wilkins!)
KABC (Channel 7) (We're toward the end of the 4 minute segment)
KCBS (Channel 2) (Nice wedding cake moment in this one!)
AP (Associated Press)
L.A. TIMES: "The evil of discrimination against our lesbian sisters and gay brothers is still alive in the passage of Proposition 8," the Rev. Ed Bacon told about 1,000 parishioners attending the Sunday morning service. "We will continue to bless same-sex unions here until we can legally celebrate same-sex unions again."

His words brought extended applause and a standing ovation from the congregation.

After the service, Bacon and other clergy members held a news conference on the church steps. They were surrounded by gay and lesbian couples, some holding hands, some standing with young children in tow.

"I know these couples. I know their relationships," Bacon told a phalanx of television cameras. "They should be celebrated, rather than disparaged. How dare a religious body say these people are not holy and these relationships are not holy?"

And then there are the families just trying to have a life ...

Here's another L.A. Times piece ... this one about a family I know from when they were active in the Diocese of Los Angeles before they moved to "the Inland Empire:"

Election leaves gay couple feeling isolated in conservative bastion

Frustrated by the passage of Proposition 8, the measure banning same-sex marriage, Lorian Dunlop walked outside her Murrieta home and nailed a sign to her tree.

"Shall We Vote on Your Marriage Now???" it asked.

It was a rare act of defiance for Dunlop and her spouse, Darcie, who have spent the last four years living a quintessential suburban life in a quiet neighborhood where they felt safe and secure.

But the battle over same-sex marriage changed all that. They attended local rallies against Proposition 8 where people in passing cars hurled insults and anti-gay slurs. At home, their political signs were repeatedly vandalized or stolen.

They look at their community differently now. An edginess has crept in.

"I feel like we are in a hostile environment," Dunlop said, sitting in her living room. "More hostile than it was before."


Read the rest here.

Meanwhile, out in the streets of L.A.

From the L.A. Times report on the rally I didn't make it to last night (after getting home from the Integrity Board Meeting in Nevada):


Police estimated that 12,500 boisterous marchers converged about 6 p.m. at Sunset and Santa Monica boulevards in Silver Lake near the site of the former Black Cat bar, which the city recently designated a historic-cultural monument for its '60s role as home of the local gay rights movement.

Police guided the demonstrators through the streets for more than three hours without major confrontations. No arrests were reported.

Other demonstrations, including one that attracted up to 10,000 people in San Diego, popped up across the state. At each rally, participants vented frustration and anger over the ballot item that amends the state Constitution to declare that "only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized" in California.

Steve Ramos, 46, of Los Angeles carried a banner through the streets of Silver Lake with the spray-painted words "Teach tolerance, not hate."

Supporters of the ballot proposition, he said, mixed "religion with politics" and missed the main point. "Everyone should have equal rights."

Others carried candles and posters of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and his famous quotations. Henry Thach, a 26-year-old information technology worker from West Covina, held a placard that read, "I have a dream too."

The gay community, he said, has clearly failed to persuade blacks, who voted heavily in favor of Proposition 8, that theirs is also a struggle for civil rights.

The Silver Lake rally began with fiery speeches from the bed of a pickup.

Among the speakers was Robin Tyler, half of the lesbian couple who were denied a marriage license in 2004 and challenged that rejection all the way to the California Supreme Court.

The pair married after the court cleared the way for gay weddings, but the legal status of such marriages is now uncertain.

Tyler expressed frustration over the leadership of the unsuccessful campaign to defeat the ballot measure and lashed out at those who supported it.

"The No on 8 people didn't want us to use the word 'bigots.' But that's what they are, bigots, bigots, bigots," Tyler said, bringing a round of cheers from the growing crowd. "We will never be made invisible again. Never again will we let them define who we are."

The march's organizers, the L.A. Coalition for Equal Marriage Rights and the Answer Coalition, did not apply for a permit, police said. The protest closed Sunset between Fountain and Sanborn avenues for about two hours as marchers moved west on Santa Monica, north on Vermont Avenue, then east on Hollywood Boulevard back to Silver Lake. Later a smaller group headed toward Hollywood.

Steering the crowds, several hundred officers were on scene, riding horses, motorcycles and bicycles. Others on foot were sprinkled through the crowd. Mario Mariscal, 20, and his mother, Delia Perez, a 45-year-old Guatemalan immigrant, stood on the Sunset Boulevard sidewalk. Mariscal came out to his mother as gay when he was 16. She held a sign saying, "Give my son his rights."

Mariscal feels the No on 8 campaign spent little energy and money in the Latino community, which tilted for the ballot item. He said he was "very fearful for my future. When will they start treating me like an equal human being?"

A handful of counter-protesters were also on the scene, separated from the marching crowds by police on horseback. One man held up a large sign: "God does not love you just the way you are."

Here, Here!

Catching up on the post-election email avalanche I found this reflection by Peter Laarman -- Executive Director of Progressive Christians Uniting -- that deserves a "Here, Here!"

Dear Friends,

I was grateful this morning to friends and family members who understood, without my having to say anything, what I would be feeling upon hearing that Californians had voted anti-gay discrimination into the state constitution. They knew I would share in the exultation over Senator Obama's historic victory while also wondering how many of the people chanting "Yes We Can!" on election night had lent their support earlier in the day to a "No You Can't" measure appearing on the same ballot.

My sister, a lawyer in Wisconsin, wrote this to me: "What on earth are people doing taking away other people's civil rights/liberties that have already been given a legal blessing? But then this is the story of a lot of things - such as a woman's right to choose -for many decades." My ex-boyfriend wrote from Florida that "it might be time for us to create our own version of the Montgomery Bus Boycott."

Barack Obama didn't write a personal note, but he said this in Chicago and it came back to me with renewed force this morning: "It's the answer that led those who have been told for so long by so many to be cynical and fearful and doubtful about what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day."

Obama was tweaking a familiar quotation. Martin Luther King used the same image in his great "Staying Awake" speech: "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice." King himself was quoting firebrand abolitionist Theodore Parker. But neither Parker nor King spoke of everyday people putting their hands on the arc of history, even though their own lived examples of passionate activism implied that positive change requires precisely this kind of individual and collective audacity.

I do not have a precise roadmap to offer, but I know for sure that the way forward for gay people and their allies now is not to mourn for too very long, and certainly not to retreat from the public stage. We need to put our queer hands on the arc of history!

Given the many legal benefits that only equal marriage rights can confer, it's not too much to say that Prop 8 and similar measures elsewhere have enshrined a 21st century form of Jim Crow. Putting it this way will doubtless offend many African Americans, but I believe that the historical analogy is indisputable.

Civil disobedience and public shaming (soul force) eventually undid Jim Crow. I humbly suggest that LGBT people learn from this history. We should not waste our energy vilifying the straight majority or vilifying the anti-gay bigots. We need to rise above their level. We need to demonstrate courage and discipline in ways that will shame the majority and bend that arc of history yet again toward liberty and justice for all.

Peter Laarman

"There's No Place Like Home"

On the list of reasons I'm glad to be flying home to Pasadena in a few minutes is this article in today's Pasadena Star News:

Prop. 8 passage isn't deterring All Saints rector
Church won't change stance
By Nathan McIntire, Staff Writer

PASADENA - Same-sex marriages may not be legal, but at All Saints Episcopal Church, they are marriages all the same.

Tuesday's passage of Proposition 8 banned same-sex marriage in California, but officials at All Saints in Pasadena vow to continue blessing such ceremonies - as the church has done for the past 16 years.

"The only difference will be that we will not actually be signing marriage certificates," the Rev. Ed Bacon, rector for All Saints, said Friday.

The church began conducting legal same-sex marriages in June, after the California Supreme Court ruled that gay couples had the right to wed.

Since then - and up until Tuesday - the church had presided over 43 legal same-sex marriages. Many of the weddings were legal confirmations of religious ceremonies that the church has held over the last decade and a half.

Bacon has been a vocal critic of Proposition 8, particularly of religion's role in the campaign opposing same-sex marriage.

"It is the last acceptable bigotry in our country and it has not been effectively challenged by religion," Bacon said. "A lot of religion is bigoted, it is not inclusive, and that is a perversion of religion."

Bacon will conduct a special service Sunday to address "justice, Barack Obama, and us." A ceremony with a wedding cake is planned to commemorate the legal marriages that All Saints has blessed.

Bear Ride and Susan Craig, both of Pasadena, were the first same-sex couple to legally wed at All Saints in June. Ride believes that since her marriage was performed in the window between the court decision and Proposition 8, it will remain legal.

"For us, having gone through the legal process, it was a breath of fresh air having our relationship honored by the state," Ride said.

Ride and her partner are holding out hope that lawsuits against the measure will invalidate the ban. Craig said the relatively narrow margin of victory for the measure was encouraging.

"I see that, in the long haul, there's been great progress made, and in the short haul we need to do more," Craig said.

On Thursday, the couple received an ironic package in the mail. The sender was the state of California, and inside was their marriage certificate.

"So we plan to frame that," said Ride. "That will remind us that we need to keep on hoping and working."
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Post-electoral map

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Come, labor on!

Here's Christ Church, Las Vegas, where the Integrity Board is meeting through Saturday.


And here's the sermon preached last night at the Eucharist in Celebration of Human Rights, which included this FABULOUS bunch of jazz musicians whose "Balm in Gilead" soothed our souls and whose "Marching to Zion" moved our feet!
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Come, labor on!
Sermon for 11/7/2008 -- Susan Russell

It was the best of times and it was the worst of times. On election night, I stood on a stage in Hollywood in a standing room only theater and watched our president-elect give his acceptance speech – joining hundreds of jubilant leaders of our community as tears of pride, excitement and amazement flowed at how far we have come as a nation in our journey toward liberty and justice for all.

And a few hours later, I stood with many of those same leaders while other tears flowed – the tears of alienation and marginalization as the ballot count continued and it became clear that the forces seeking to disenfranchise same sex couples from equal protection in the State of California would pass their proposition designed to end same sex marriage in California.

What I want to say tonight is that Proposition 8 may have passed but it will not prevail.

And I want to share with you a little of what it has been like for some of us in California over the last few months.

It is always a deep joy and amazing privilege to be invited into the profound intimacy of two beloveds making their love tangible in vows professed and rings exchanged in the sight of God and of the community gathered. And for the 140 days between June 17th and November 4th at All Saints Church in Pasadena, as 43 couples invited us into that holy space with them, their joy was often accompanied by a sense of urgency.

And that urgency included a pinch of anxiety labeled “Proposition 8” -- giving the traditional words from the marriage vows, “Those whom God has joined together let no one put asunder” new power and poignancy.

And after Proposition 8, those whom God has joined together remain joined together – in the sight of God and of All Saints Church – as we redouble our efforts to fight for the dignity of every human being and to speak for liberty and justice for all. And while I am confident we will succeed in the end, I am haunted today by a voice mail I received the day after the election from someone named Jason.

“We were getting married next month,” he said voice full of pain, “And now I feel like I want to die. My life has been stolen from me and I just don’t understand it.” My only answer was to stand with Jason in his pain the way we stood with Mel and Gary – and Bear and Susan, and Joe and Joey, Harry and Mike, and all the others in their joy. The witness to God’s love made tangible in these marriages and in this struggle is nothing other grace in action, as we continue to work with God to turn this human race into the human family it was meant to be.

And we are the ones who will make it happen. We – those of us gathered at Christ Church tonight and those of us committed to the gospel agenda of the full inclusion of all the baptized in all the sacraments all over this great church of ours – we have been called in this time and in this place what prophets always do – to claim the high calling of comforting the afflicted – and afflicting the comfortable.

You may not feel like a prophet. I know I don’t. And you may have as many excuses as Amos – prophets always do. In the OT reading we hear “Hey, God – not me! I’m just a vinedresser a herdsman … my dad wasn't even a prophet and I’m no prophet ... you've got the wrong guy!”

And yet Amos did as he was charged by the God who knew him better than he knew himself and became the prophet whose legacy offers us what are arguably among the most stirring of the clarion calls to justice in our scriptural legacy: “But let justice roll down like waters And righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”

And then there are these words from the modern day prophet, Abraham Heschel – words which I find particularly appropriate for tonight as we gather in the aftermath of an election that held both tremendous promise and great pain: for Heschel famously said: “Patience, a quality of holiness may be sloth in the soul when associated with the lack of righteous indignation.”

As we celebrate the historic election on Tuesday we need to celebrate both the patience and perseverance of generations of justice doers who have brought us thus far on the way toward liberty and justice for all. And then we need to put our righteous indignation to work on how far we have yet to go.

Come, labor on.

Who dares stand idle on the harvest plain,

while all around us waves the golden grain?

And to each servant does the Master say,

"Go work today."

This work we are about is nothing less than the building of that kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven we pray for every time we gather as God’s beloved people – every time we receive the bread and wine made holy and pray to be sent out to do the work we have been given to do – every time we take up our cross and go out into the world as bearers of the Good News of a God who loved us enough to become one of us … and called us to love our neighbors in exactly the same way.

And you don’t love your neighbors by spending millions of dollars on a fear based ad campaign in order to take away their right to marry by writing discrimination into the constitution intended to protect the rights of all citizens. The New York Times got it right when it said in its lead editorial on Thursday, “the immediate impact of Tuesday’s rights-shredding exercise is to underscore the danger of allowing the ballot box to be used to take away people’s fundamental rights.”

And yet, in the election of Barack Obama, there is a bright light of hope that once thought impossible obstacles to fairness, equality and respect for the dignity of every human being can be overcome. We are not done with racism in this country by a long shot – and yet we rejoice today as we prepare for a January 20th inauguration many of us could never have dreamed we’d see in our lifetime.

Let us tonight commit to claim the light of that hope in our own struggles against the marginalization, discrimination and demonization of LGBT people – and let us remember that we go out to do that work empowered by the one who promised us:

“I have come as light into the world, that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.”

And it has NEVER been more important for us to bear that light we have been given by virtue of our baptism out into the world as we take our ministries as the Body of Christ in the world. For the sad reality we face tonight as people of faith is that it was other people of faith who fueled the fire behind Proposition 8 in California – and behind the initiatives in Arizona, Florida and Arkansas as well.

And our voices are the ones needed to speak out, to step up and to offer our alternative message of hope, love, inclusion and acceptance. Not my voice, as President of Integrity. Not “their” voices as members of our Integrity Board. But your voices … ALL of your voices – at the local grassroots level and in the national church legislative level. It’s not an either/or – it’s not “the local” vs. “the national” – it’s all of us together moving the church forward toward the full inclusion of all the baptized in all the sacraments.

I want to close tonight with a personal testimony to how I’ve seen that happen.

Truth be told, and hard as it might be to believe, I myself wasn't at all convinced women's ordination was such a great idea. At least I wasn't in 1976 when it was approved by General Convention.

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Now don't get me wrong -- I was appropriately "liberal" about the concept. I mean, I was all for the ERA and women's rights and everything. But when it came to me, personally -- well, I wanted a "real priest" -- and what that looked like to me was a "Father" – because that was the only image I had for priesthood. So when in 1988 I was invited to attend a women’s retreat weekend, I went aware that there was going to be a woman priest on the staff -- and I went rather condescendingly "open to the experience:" a perfect set up for the Holy Spirit.

On the opening night of the three day retreat, as I sat in the silence of the candlelit chapel after the priest gave the opening meditation, I realized that it was the first time I had ever been sorry that a preacher had stopped preaching and sat down. As I walked back to the dorm room following the service it was already clear to me that I was going to have to re-evaluate my whole position on this issue. And by 1993 I was in seminary.

The 1976 General Convention vote on women’s ordination didn’t change my mind or touch my heart. She did. But her ministry would not have been able to if the vote hadn’t happened. And I think today of the hundreds of women whose gifts and graces have enlivened our worship, inspired our spirits, challenged our intellect, pastored our people in the years since 1976. I try to imagine this church without them. I not only “can’t" -- I don’t want to.

And I can say the same about scores of gay and lesbian people -- lay and ordained: living lives of faithful service, committed to God and to each other, touching hearts, changing minds, living the Gospel. I believe that it is their witness and example – YOUR witness and example – are what the Holy Spirit will use to change not only hearts and minds but VOTES in the General Conventions AND the General Elections yet to come!
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So …

Come, labor on.

Away with gloomy doubts and faithless fear!

No arm so weak but may do service here:

by feeblest agents may our God fulfill

God’s righteous will.

Thanks be to God. Alleluia. Amen

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Pastoral Letter from All Saints Church Rector Ed Bacon

On Tuesday, our nation and world experienced a momentous and decisive shift away from the politics of fear and domination toward a new day of cooperation, interdependence and hope. During our liturgies Sunday, we will joyfully mark the beginning of a new day for this nation and the world, reflecting on the tasks at hand for us at All Saints, a community whose mission is to make love tangible and to help turn the human race into the human family.

While we have a renewed sense of hope and resolve, we at All Saints are also deeply disturbed, angered, saddened and embarrassed by the passing of Proposition 8, an attempt to revise our State’s Constitution to be a document of discrimination against an entire class of citizens. How immoral to use the State Constitution to deprive some citizens of their human rights instead of guaranteeing human rights for all! The proponents of Proposition 8 seem to be callously unaware of the abusive impact on lesbian and gay citizens and their allies when California votes to give rights to poultry and take them away from human beings.

What is particularly shameful about Proposition 8’s victory Tuesday is that so many religious people promoted it using a distorted interpretation of Scripture. Jesus himself reversed many Biblical guidelines when they were not aligned with the central admonition of Scripture to love your neighbor as yourself. Not everything in the Bible is Godly, moral, or Constitutional (Jacob’s defining marriage as between one man and two women Genesis 29: 17-28; stoning rebellious children Deuteronomy 21: 18-21; killing those who work on the Sabbath -- Exodus 31: 14-15; eating shellfish seen as an abomination Lev. 11:10). The separation of Church and State prevents religious oppression as well as writing the Bible into the Constitution particularly discriminatory interpretations of Scripture.

So what will we do at All Saints? We will be of good courage, hold fast to that which is good, help the afflicted, and honor all persons. We will continue to work passionately and tirelessly for equality, freedom, and justice for all. We will continue to bless same-gender unions until we can once again legally celebrate same-gender weddings. We will fight to make sure that although in this election Proposition 8 passed, it will not succeed.

President-elect Obama on Tuesday night spoke words resonant of Dr. King’s. He reminded us encouragingly of what can be achieved when people who are not cynical, fearful, and doubtful put “their hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day.” That characterizes the DNA of All Saints people. Come to church Sunday where we will recommit ourselves to doing our part to help the long arc of the universe continue to bend toward justice.

Yours in Love,

The Reverend J. Edwin Bacon, Rector

All Saints Church, Pasadena

Equality's Winding Path

Lead editorial in today's New York Times: This'll preach!

Amid the soaring oratory about the presidential election, it was Barack Obama who put it best late Tuesday night. “That’s the genius of America, that America can change,” he said. “Our union can be perfected.”

But as Mr. Obama’s victory showed, the path to change is arduous. Even as the nation shattered one barrier of intolerance, we were disappointed that voters in four states chose to reinforce another. Ballot measures were approved in Arkansas, Arizona, Florida and California that discriminate against couples of the same sex.

We do not view these results as reason for despair. Struggles over civil rights never follow a straight trajectory, and the ugly outcome of these ballot fights should not obscure the building momentum for full equality for gay people, including acceptance of marriage between gay men and women. But the votes remind us of how much remains to be done before this bigotry is finally erased.

In Arkansas, voters approved a backward measure destined to hurt children by barring unmarried couples from becoming adoptive or foster parents. In Arizona, voters approved a state constitutional amendment to forbid same-sex couples from marrying. Florida voters approved a more sweeping amendment intended to bar marriage, civil unions and other family protections.

The most notable defeat for fairness was in California, where right-wing forces led by the Mormon Church poured tens of millions of dollars into the campaign for Proposition 8 — a measure to enshrine bigotry in the state’s Constitution by preventing people of the same sex from marrying. The measure was designed to overturn May’s State Supreme Court decision, which made California the second state to end that exclusion of same-sex couples. Massachusetts did so in 2004.

The firmly grounded ruling said that everyone has a basic right “to establish a legally recognized family with the person of one’s choice,” and found California’s strong domestic partnership statute to be inadequate.

We wish that Tuesday’s vote of 52 percent to 48 percent had gone the other way. But when those numbers are compared with the 61 percent to 39 percent result in 2000, when Californians approved the law that was overturned by their Supreme Court, it is evident that voters have grown more comfortable with marriage equality.

Progress is evident, too, in the fact that since 2000, the California Legislature has twice passed a measure to let gay couples marry — only to be vetoed by the Republican governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger. To his credit, he opposed Proposition 8. We suspect that if California holds another referendum on the issue down the road, it will yield a different result.

Not all the results for same-sex marriage were negative. In Connecticut, voters rejected a proposed constitutional convention through which opponents of same-sex marriage wanted to overturn a recent decision by the Connecticut Supreme Court, on sound equal protection grounds, allowing same-sex couples to marry.

Far from showing that California’s Supreme Court was wrong to extend the right of marriage to gay people, the passage of Proposition 8 is a reminder of the crucial role that the courts play in protecting vulnerable groups from unfair treatment.

Apart from creating legal uncertainty about the thousands of same-sex marriages that have been performed in California and giving rise to lawsuits challenging whether the rules governing ballot measures were properly followed, the immediate impact of Tuesday’s rights-shredding exercise is to underscore the danger of allowing the ballot box to be used to take away people’s fundamental rights.

INTEGRITY POST-ELECTION STATEMENT

I'm heading to the airport literally momentarily for the Integrity Board Meeting, but wanted to post this before I go:

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Discrimination Grieves the Heart of God

November 7, 2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Integrity is deeply disappointed that anti-LGBT marriage bans passed in Florida and Arizona, and that in Arkansas voters voted to bar all unmarried people, LGBT or straight, from adopting children or serving as foster parents. And while ballots are still being counted in California and results are not yet clear, what is clear is that we have miles to go in this great country of ours before liberty and justice for all is not just a pledge but a reality.

“We believe discrimination against any member of the human family grieves the heart of God,’ said Integrity President Susan Russell. “And, here in California, we are deeply saddened that the multi-million dollar campaign of fear, disinformation and division waged by Proposition 8 supporters worked to convince so many voters to choose bigotry over equality.”

“While many voters came to believe this discriminatory initiative was about school curriculum and tax exempt status for churches, the reality is that this proposition attempts to totally undo one of the fundamental purposes of our constitution: to protect the rights of minorities from the kind of campaign of lies and distortions we have witnessed here in California.”

Nevertheless, Integrity is committed to continuing to work with our interfaith partners toward the day when “liberty and justice for all” in this nation really means “all.” We are convinced that in the end, the fundamental fairness of the American people will prevail and we will continue to work, strive, pray, preach and advocate for that day when LGBT families will no longer be “strangers at the gate” but full and equal citizens in this great nation of ours.

“At the same time, we will continue our efforts within the Episcopal Church and our witness to the wider Anglican Communion on behalf of the LGBT faithful. Even as we commit ourselves to continue to offer our witness to end discrimination in the civil arena, we are looking ahead to our 2009 General Convention of the Episcopal Church. Integrity and will redouble our efforts to work for the full inclusion of all the baptized in all the sacraments of our church as we pray for God’s strength and guidance in the struggle toward wholeness for the whole human family.”

(The Reverend) Susan Russell, President
president@integrityusa.org
714-356-5718 (mobile)
626-583-2741 (office)
620 Park Avenue #311 Rochester, NY 14607-2943
800-462-9498 info@integrityusa.org

We are sad, but not disheartened

From a message by Joe Salmonese for the Human Rights Campaign:

In California our messages of fairness and reason were met with appalling messages of fear, distortion and downright hate that our opponents put forth on television, on radio, across the Internet, and in Sunday sermons.

In 2000, a similar marriage ban in California was passed by a margin of 61% to 39%. So the closeness of this race and the positive shift in public opinion underscores that it is only a matter of time before we add more states to the march for marriage equality. As Obama said last night, “That's the true genius of America – that America can change.”

Yesterday, an unfortunate majority of voters stood with the most extreme and negative elements of society to deny the rights of loving and committed gay and lesbian couples. But it’s not the first time that has happened to us, and it won’t be the last. It doesn’t change the fact that we are married. It doesn’t change the fact that we have families. Make no mistake. We are bowed, but not discouraged. We are sad, but not disheartened. We grieve, but not as those who are without hope.

Remember, our marriages didn’t begin with a decision of the court, and they will not end with a vote of the people.

Statement by Bishop Bruno on Prop 8

I call upon Californians who supported Proposition 8 to make an honest and dedicated effort to learn more about the lives and experiences of lesbian and gay humanity whose constitutional rights are unfairly targeted by this measure. Look carefully at scriptural interpretations, and remember that the Bible was once used to justify slavery, among other forms of oppression.

It is important that we understand that we are a state that lives with freedom of religion – and freedom from religious oppression.

In my view, and in that of many Episcopalians, Proposition 8 is a lamentable expression of fear-based discrimination that attempts to deny the constitutional rights of some Californians on the basis of sexual orientation. It is only a matter of time before its narrow constraints are ultimately nullified by the courts and our citizens’ own increasing knowledge about the diversity of God’s creation.

Too often the road to justice is made deeply painful by setbacks such as Proposition 8, which nearly half of California voters rejected. But as our new President-elect has said, “…let us summon a new spirit of patriotism; of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other.”

Air America Today

This just in:

Rachel Maddow radio show (with Ron Reagan today!) ... 4:15 Pacific/7:15 Eastern ... segment on Proposition 8.

Click here to listen online ( I think )

UPATE ON CALIFORNIA'S PROPOSITION 8

Just posted to the "No on 8" website: Nov 05, 2008

Results Status

Roughly 400,000 votes separate yes from no on Prop 8 – out of 10 million votes tallied.

Based on turnout estimates reported yesterday, we expect that there are more than 3 million and possibly as many as 4 million absentee and provisional ballots yet to be counted.

Given that fundamental rights are at stake, we must wait to hear from the Secretary of State tomorrow how many votes are yet to be counted as well as where they are from.

It is clearly a very close election and we monitored the results all evening and this morning.

As of this point, the election is too close to call.

Because Prop 8 involves the sensitive matter of individual rights, we believe it is important to wait until we receive further information about the outcome.

Geoff Kors
Executive Committee
NO on Prop 8

Kate Kendell
Executive Committee
NO on Prop 8
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BREAKING NEWS FROM ELECTION CENTRAL:

First time presidental voter celebrates on Oahu!

(That would be my son, Jamie, who knows how to keep his Mama happy ... he just emailed me this picture in an email entitled: "Yay, I voted!" ...

dear mom

to save you any worries and myself an inquisition, i thought i'd let you know i did in fact vote today, and have photographic proof, being me with my ballot receipt.

love, jim

Let's hear it for the political process ... and email!

One down ...

... a majority to go!

Here's what a polling place looks like in my 'hood ... we voted a little after 8:00 a.m. this morning. There was a bit of a line but it moved right along.

I was heartened by the neighborhood families who came, bringing their small children with them, and listened with some poignancy as one dad explained -- probably again -- to his 6ish year old why this was an historic day.

It was also a joyful thing to hear the number of people answering "yes" to the "are you a first time voter?" question -- and watching the poll workers take care to explain the process and equip them to cast their ballot.

And now we wait. I'm on a "Bread of Anxiety Fast" today ... so far so good. So VOTE, stay tuned ... and let us pray:

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Almighty God, to whom we must account for all our powers and privileges: Guide the people of the United States in the election of officials and representatives; that, by faithful administration and wise laws, the rights of all may be protected and our nation be enabled to fulfill your purposes; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Entertainment Tonight Coverage of November 1st Interfaith Rally Against Proposition 8

Watch a snippet of celebrity voices who spoke out at St. John's on Saturday from the Entertainment Tonight Online website (including Amy Brenneman, pictured below):

One more rally ...

We gathered at Neighborhood Church in Pasadena ...

... a couple hundred strong ...


... priests and rabbis ...

... and these kids who drove all the way in from Riverside to be part of the "No on 8" action.

So after a few cheerleading speeches from the clergy types (Neighborhood Church Pastor Jim Nelson, pictured here) ...

... the gathered crowd gathered itself and its rally signs and headed down to the corner of Orange Grove and Colorado (the corner where the Rose Parade floats make the turn in front of the Norton Simon Museum) ....

... and waved our signs and chanted "No on 8" to honking horns and waving supporters ...

... NO on 8 ... Unfair & Wrong!

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Here endeth the campaign.

On to Election Day!

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For all the saints

For all the saints, who from their labors rest,
Who thee by faith before the world confessed
Thy name, O Jesus, be forever blessed.
Alleluia. Alleluia

Madelyn Dunham

October 26, 1921 - November 3, 2008

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Madelyn Dunham, grandmother of presidential hopeful Barack Obama, joined the saints in light today. Rest eternal grant to her, and may her soul and the souls of all the departed rest in peace and rise in glory!

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We gave thanks yesterday, as we do on every All Saints Sunday, in a particular way for the saints in light -- for all those who have gone before us. And this year our All Saints Day celebration here at All Saints Church was -- for me -- a particularly glorious and grounding one. As we listened to the majestic music of the Bruckner Requiem celebrating the hope of light in darkness, the promise of life in death and the gift of love in all, I could feel the stress and anxiety of the election, the economy, the Anglican Communion and the Episcopal Church (to mention a few!) all melt away.

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Bathed in the beauty of the sanctuary, surrounded by music, incense, liturgy and beloved friends, colleagues and congregants, we celebrated the mystery of love and life that transcends the pain and loss of death. We voiced the names of those we love but see no more as the memorial book was placed on the altar -- and this year that book contained the name of my mother, Betty Lou Brown, who became one of the saints in light on July 24th.

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She was there, along with Jane -- beloved partner of my colleague Lori -- who lost her courageous battle with cancer in September; with Lawrence King -- the young man so brutally killed in the hate crime last February; with Alix Evans -- sister priest and Los Angeles colleague whose life we celebrated just two weeks ago ... and dozens and dozens more. Too numerable to mention and yet all equally beloved in the sight of God -- and equally gathered up into God's loving embrace.

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It's a context thing, I guess. Yes, the election tomorrow matters. Matters TERRIBLY. And I will head from here to one last rally -- stand on a street corner with one last rally sign -- and wake up tomorrow to be in line at the polls when they open and then wait -- like everybody else -- for the election results of this hard-fought fight ... praying for hope to triumph over fear; for equality to win over bigotry.

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And.

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And when the strife is fierce, the warfare long

Steals on the ear the distant triumph song

And hearts are brave again and arms are strong.

Alleluia. Alleluia.

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The Bruckner Requiem was, for me this All Saints Day, that triumph song.

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Yes, the strife is fierce as we battle against homophobia, ignorance, bigotry and oppression. And the warfare sometimes seems as if it will never end -- as we go from the Anglican Communion front to the civic election front with General Convention 2009 looming on the horizon. The strife is fierce, the warfare long and the battle worth fighting -- for it is nothing less than the baton we have been passed as we carry on the work of those saints in light whom we love but see no more.

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And for a moment -- on Sunday -- the triumph song was not distant but immanent. And standing at the altar as we sang the service I swear I could hear the heavenly hosts singing along.

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And my heart felt braver. And my arms felt stronger. And equipped with the sure and certain knowledge that nothing can separate us from the love of God, I left believing all over again that we CAN turn the human race into the human family -- one General Election at a time, one General Convention at a time, one Lambeth Conference at a time, one inch at a time.

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Yes, we can.

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Yes, we can.

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Yes, we can.

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Give rest, O Christ, to your servants with your saints,

where sorrow and pain are no more,

neither sighing, but life everlasting.

Let's go change the world!

A mid-day 30 second Hope Jolt:

Tick Tock Clock!

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It's election count-down time and if you're anything like me you're torn between not wanting to hear another single mumblin' WORD about anything political and obsessively refreshing your news pages to make sure you're not missing anything in these last moments of this historic election cycle.

Here in California we're fighting a two front battle to elect the president who will lead this nation with hope into a future with liberty and justice for ALL Americans AND to beat back the efforts to write discrmination into our state constitution by defeating Propostion 8.

I've still got things to say about All Saints Sunday but for now here are what may be my last words about putting faith into action around the election:

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Dear Friends,

On this day before the election, here's one more thing you can do to defeat Propostion 8:

Forward this YouTube link ...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opx-v_OhFnQ

... to ANYBODY who:

[a] is voting No on 8 and ask them to send it on to their networks

[b] may be undecided and will hear these voices and make the right decision

[c] plans to vote Yes on 8 "because of the children" and might think twice

We can do this. You can help.

No on 8!
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Let's hear it for the L.A. Times!!

Religions and their believers are free to define marriage as they please; they are free to consider homosexuality a sin. But they are not free to impose their definitions of morality on the state.

(From the lead Editorial in today's Los Angeles Times ... write 'em and say "thanks!")

Prop 8: A Campaign of Misdirection
No on Proposition 8: Debunking the myths used to promote the ban on same-sex marriage.

November 2, 2008

Clever magicians practice the art of misdirection -- distracting the eyes of the audience to something attention-grabbing but irrelevant so that no one notices what the magician is really doing. Look over at that fuchsia scarf, up this sleeve, at anything besides the actual trick.

The campaign promoting Proposition 8, which proposes to amend the state Constitution to ban same-sex marriages, has masterfully misdirected its audience, California voters. Look at the first-graders in San Francisco, attending their lesbian teacher's wedding! Look at Catholic Charities, halting its adoption services in Massachusetts, where same-sex marriage is legal! Look at the church that lost its tax exemption over gay marriage! Look at anything except what Proposition 8 is actually about: a group of people who are trying to impose on the state their belief that homosexuality is immoral and that gays and lesbians are not entitled to be treated equally under the law.

That truth would never sell in tolerant, live-and-let-live California, and so it has been hidden behind a series of misleading half-truths. Once the sleight of hand is revealed, though, the campaign's illusions fall away.

Take the story of Catholic Charities. The service arm of the Roman Catholic Church closed its adoption program in Massachusetts not because of the state's gay marriage law but because of a gay anti-discrimination law passed many years earlier. In fact, the charity had voluntarily placed older foster children in gay and lesbian households -- among those most willing to take hard-to-place children -- until the church hierarchy was alerted and demanded that adoptions conform to the church's religious teaching, which was in conflict with state law. The Proposition 8 campaign, funded in large part by Mormons who were urged to do so by their church, does not mention that the Mormon church's adoption arm in Massachusetts is still operating, even though it does not place children in gay and lesbian households.

How can this be? It's a matter of public accountability, not infringement on religion. Catholic Charities acted as a state contractor, receiving state and federal money to find homes for special-needs children who were wards of the state, and it faced the loss of public funding if it did not comply with the anti-discrimination law. In contrast, LDS (for Latter-day Saints) Family Services runs a private adoption service without public funding. Its work, and its ability to follow its religious teachings, have not been altered.

That San Francisco field trip? The children who attended the wedding had their parents' signed permission, as law requires. A year ago, with the same permission, they could have traveled to their teacher's domestic-partnership ceremony. Proposition 8 does not change the rules about what children are exposed to in school. The state Education Code does not allow schools to teach comprehensive sex education -- which includes instruction about marriage -- to children whose parents object.

Another "Yes on 8" canard is that the continuation of same-sex marriage will force churches and other religious groups to perform such marriages or face losing their tax-exempt status. Proponents point to a case in New Jersey, where a Methodist-based nonprofit owned seaside land that included a boardwalk pavilion. It obtained an exemption from state property tax for the land on the grounds that it was open for public use and access. Events such as weddings -- of any religion -- could be held in the pavilion by reservation. But when a lesbian couple sought to book the pavilion for a commitment ceremony, the nonprofit balked, saying this went against its religious beliefs.

The court ruled against the nonprofit, not because gay rights trump religious rights but because public land has to be open to everyone or it's not public. The ruling does not affect churches' religious tax exemptions or their freedom to marry whom they please on their private property, just as Catholic priests do not have to perform marriages for divorced people and Orthodox synagogues can refuse to provide space for the weddings of interfaith couples. And Proposition 8 has no bearing on the issue; note that the New Jersey case wasn't about a wedding ceremony.

Much has been made about same-sex marriage changing the traditional definition of marriage. But marriage has evolved for thousands of years, from polygamous structures in which brides were so much chattel to today's idealized love matches. In seeking to add a sentence to California's Constitution that says, "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized," Proposition 8 supporters seek to enforce adherence to their own religious or personal definition. The traditional makeup of families has changed too, in ways that many religious people find immoral. Single parents raise their children; couples divorce and blend families. Yet same-sex marriage is the only departure from tradition that has been targeted for constitutional eradication.

Religions and their believers are free to define marriage as they please; they are free to consider homosexuality a sin. But they are not free to impose their definitions of morality on the state. Proposition 8 proponents know this, which is why they have misdirected the debate with highly colored illusions about homosexuals trying to take away the rights of religious Californians. Since May, when the state Supreme Court overturned a proposed ban on same-sex marriage as unconstitutional, more than 16,000 devoted gay and lesbian couples have celebrated the creation of stable, loving households, of equal legal stature with other households. Their happiness in no way diminishes the rights or happiness of others.

Californians must cast a clear eye on Proposition 8's real intentions. It seeks to change the state Constitution in a rare and terrible way, to impose a single moral belief on everyone and to deprive a targeted group of people of civil rights that are now guaranteed. This is something that no Californian, of any religious belief, should accept. Vote no to the bigotry of Proposition 8.

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ONE more No on 8 ad ...

I'll have something to say about All Saints Day after I do ONE MORE wedding this afternoon ... but in the meantime, check this one out ... and forward it to ANYBODY who might still be "undecided" about Proposition 8:

Speaking of President Bartlett ...

A commenter on the previous blog asked where President Bartlett would have stood on Propostion 8. I checked the archives and I think this answers the question.

Enjoy!

NO ON 8: Faith in Action, Call to Action

It was a beautiful day in the neighborhood ...

... as we gathered at St. John's Cathedral in downtown Los Angeles for the "Faith for Equality No on 8 Call to Action" event.
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Now, the No on Prop 8 sign outside the cathedral had sustained a little "collateral damage" -- as you can see from this photo -- as tension mounts, the election looms and vandalism of No on 8 sites escalate ...
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... but the volunteers from the No on 8 campaign and from the faith communities who gathered were "ready to rock and roll!"

And so with a NEW banner hung beneath the cathedral's awesome rose window ...

... 60+ clergy and faith leaders from all over the southland gathered in the parish hall -- with L.A. Bishop Assistant Sergio Carranza and St. John's Dean & Rector Mark Kowalewski ...

... for a multi-faith procession into a packed church to the drumming and singing of "Siyahamba: We Are Marching in the Light of God."

And for the next hour plus (Okay ... almost two hours!) we sang and prayed and shared together -- in the Light of God -- the joys of those who have come together to be married during this time of grace and inclusion as well as the fears and anxieties of the gathered community working to keep that right to marriage equality from being taken away by the unfair, discriminatory ballot initiative known as "Proposition 8."

"What is this event about?" the reporters asked me before the service began.

"It's about people of faith coming together across lines of denomination and tradition to urge a No on 8 vote on November 4th -- to fight the efforts to write discrimination into our constitution -- and to stand together committed to being a nation of liberty and justice for all -- not just some!"

I had many favorite moments in the service (and maybe we'll get pictures of that later) ... but among the most moving were the witnesses of these two folks ... a young married Mormon father-of-three and a young Muslim woman -- .

... both courageously standing against the "official" position of their faith traditions in witness to the love of a God who transcends dogma & doctrine, ideology and theology, identity and orientation.

Here are happy activists out on the plaza after the service, being equipped by the No on 8 volunteers to "pray with their feet" by signing up for visibility actions around the city and to volunteer to get the vote out on Election Day.

Here's Integrity Board Chaplain Randy Kimmler with fabulous friend Jean ...

Me with Canon James Blair White ... AKA Chair of the L.A. GC'09 Deputation ...

... Susan Craig and spouse Bear Ride (the second same-sex couple married at All Saints Church on June 17th) with Rabbi Lisa Edwards ...

... and Lutheran Bishop Dean Nelson getting equipped to pray with his feet ... and with rally signs! ... and help defeat Proposition 8 on November 4th!!

There was good press coverage ... we'll see what turns up on the news ... here's one of the reporters interviewing actress and All Saints parishioner, Amy Brenneman.

Finally -- in deference to the "other" election going on -- here's a candid shot of the-guy-many-of-us-wish-really-WAS-still-in-The-West-Wing ... President Josiah Bartlet (AKA Martin Sheen) ...

... chatting after the service with fellow participants. His heartfelt witness arose from the foundational values of his faith as a Roman Catholic peace activist and his presence with us was an inspiration and a blessing.

It was an amazing day of wonderful work and witness ... and before I sign off to go do ONE MORE WEDDING for the day (@ 7:00 p.m. Pacific ... I think it's either our fifth or sixth today!) ... let me just say one more thing (because they teach us to ALWAYS end on our talking point!)