I couldn’t really sleep last night. The latest polls still have us losing the battle against Prop 8 by about 5 points. I was mulling over ideas in my head as to how I could help in this fight. I decided that I would reach out to as many of my friends as possible to encourage them to vote NO on Prop 8. This morning, I randomly pinged one of my friends to check to confirm that he had at least registered to vote. He hadn’t. I was pissed. Beyond pissed. HOW COULD YOU NOT FUCKING REGISTER TO VOTE?!?!?!?! In what will be one of the most significant and historical elections ever where we can actually effect change, there are still people choosing to be apathetic?!?!?! WTF?!? I don’t get it. What does it take for people to care? Is it not enough that our economy is in shambles and that we’ve had an idiot as our leader for the past 8 painful years? Maybe we just haven’t wasted enough of the people’s money or sacrificed enough American lives in the name of oil yet? Or perhaps people are regressing and actually do believe that separate is equal? WAKE UP AMERICA!!! I get that people have their own lives to live, and that they have other priorities, but we’re seriously talking about undermining the very foundation that this country was built upon: freedom and equality for all. Please take your privilege seriously. Please vote, and more importantly, please vote NO on 8!
“All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing” — Edmund Burke
The Yes on 8 people are getting more and more irritating as we get closer to election day. They continue to propagate lie after lie, with no real justification for their hate and discrimination other than the fact that “…the Bible said so.” I’m sorry, but that just doesn’t fly with me. No book, no person, and certainly no law is going to tell me whom I’m going to love and whom I can marry.
Almost every one of their arguments is obscenely flawed and discriminatory in nature. The sanctity of marriage? Really?! Such a thing exists? Well, anything that was sanctimonious about marriage was either destroyed when people got divorced, and/or when spouses abused each other. Come on, you’re going to allow Britney Spears to marry and divorce any douche-bag she wants, but you can’t extend the same privilege to civilized and law-abiding people of the same sex? Explain to me how that’s fair without bringing God into it. Seriously, what is so wrong about PEOPLE of the same sex marrying each other? We’re talking about HUMANITY here folks! Queer people are not animals who can be paraded around as pets, used for entertainment, and then discarded and dismissed the moment they begin to realize that they’re humans as well. In case you’ve forgotten, this kind of discrimination eerily parallels anti-miscegenation laws that were ultimately ruled unconstitutional in 1967 in Loving v. Virginia. Again, I beg the question that if PEOPLE are at the heart of this controversy, why is this an issue?!
Moreover, I’ve recently been hearing children being used as a justification for these acts of cowardice and insecurity. Really people, can we start acting our ages and not our shoe sizes, please?! The fact that your kid OVERHEARD that gay people are marrying one another does not mean that the curriculum is changing, nor is it an excuse to ban gay marriages in general. Think of it this way: you’ll allow them to play Grand Theft Auto where the goal of the game is to steal, shoot, and kill, yet you forbid them to hear about instances of love and commitment? Hmm, are you sure you’re really fit to be a parent?! Is your goal as a parent really to teach hate and division?
My last gripe is their argument about preserving “traditional” families. Who the fuck cares?! Seriously, is there a law/formula out there that stipulates that only when you have a man and a woman as parents can you have a functional family? As far as I’m aware, unless you’re Ward and June Cleaver, this concept of a traditional family is complete and utter bullshit. The sole argument behind “preserving” a “traditional” family is that it would be a more loving and conducive environment for the child to grow up in. Is it really?! Are gay people not capable of loving their kids? Are they not capable of being good parents? What exactly is the missing gene or the physical impairment that makes them incapable of providing either?
I’m not going to get into an argument on theology. You can quote Bible verse after Bible verse, but the fact of the matter is this: it isn’t about religion, it’s about equality. For those of you who aren’t aware of it yet, equality isn’t just about being blind to race or gender, it also applies to sexuality and love. To put it simply, no one likes to be told what to do, who to date, who to love, and who to marry, so why all the hypocrisy just because some people are insecure with their own sexualities. If you’re that insecure and fearful of gays and their recognition as human beings (gasp), then why not just move to Iran.
I remember it clearly. It was the 2005 Stephen, Tommy, and Dannydan (STD) birthday party. You walked in wearing a YSL fitted blazer. I thought you were cute, but decided to play it cool. You walked towards me and a slow smile started to form on my face as I prepared to introduce myself. You were a step away, but then you turned slightly and began talking to my friend instead who was standing right next to me. “It’s okay,” I told myself. “He’ll probably introduce himself since I’m standing right next to who he’s talking to.” But you didn’t, and I was snubbed. Yes, you snubbed me. I was going to write you off, but fortunately, you eventually came back to introduce yourself.
It’s been more than three years since that day, but my heart has never been more full, nor has it stopped racing since that moment. You’ve truly been a blessing in my life, and I can’t possibly imagine life without you in it. I love you more with each passing day, and I never want to wake up from this sweet, sweet dream.
Come November 4th, we have a couple of huge tasks at hand. We won’t just be electing the next President of the United States, we’ll also be in a huge battle to defend equality and a right that so many heterosexuals take for granted–the right to choose whom they want to marry and love. In California, we’ve finally taken a step towards true equality by allowing same-sex couples to legally marry one another. However, Prop 8 seeks to take that all away–our equality, our right to choose who we want to marry, and by extension, who we love. Please don’t let this happen. You don’t have contribute to the No on 8 campaign if you can’t afford to, but at the very least, please go and vote NO on Prop 8 come election day. Better yet, spread the word and tell your friends to vote NO on 8 as well. We’ve come too far to lose now. Don’t let them treat us as second-class citizens anymore.
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