When the recently approved “Proposition 8: California Marriage Protection Amendment” goes into effect, it will amend the state constitution to define marriage as a union solely between one man and one woman.
This summer, California’s Supreme Court wrongly overturned the people’s vote and legalized same-sex marriage, reversing an earlier ban. A resounding “yes” on the proposition means that the Constitution will be amended to ban gay marriage.
It is interesting to see how Proposition 8 has had a snowball effect on other states. Arizona, Connecticut and Florida included ballot initiatives on same-sex marriage this year. Regardless, same-sex marriage legislation is only effective on the state level.
The U.S. federal government does not recognize same-sex marriages under federal law as a consequence of the Defense of Marriage Act.
In 1996, Congress passed the Defense of Marriage Act. It prohibits federal recognition of same-sex marriages and also permits a state to ignore gay marriages performed outside its borders.
In 2000, President Bush characterized the situation as a state’s rights issue, and today he supports a federal constitutional amendment that will define marriage as occurring between one man and one woman. To date, 39 states have laws modeled on the DOMA.
While states like Vermont, New Jersey and New Hampshire have created legal unions for gays and lesbians, it cannot be called a marriage.
With president-elect Barrack Obama at the helm for the next four years, it will be interesting to see if Obama continues to support full civil unions and federal rights for LGBT couples.
Does he plan to appoint Supreme Court justices who will interpret the law to justify changing the Defense of Marriage Amendment?
While on the Senate floor in 2006, Obama voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment which defined marriage as between one man and one woman and prevented judicial extension of marriage-like rights to same-sex or other unmarried couples.
I hope his words on the Senate floor regarding the Federal Marriage Amendment will not come back to haunt him.
Obama stated on June 5, 2006: “We are better than this. And we certainly owe the American people more than this. I know that this amendment will fail, and when it does, I hope we can start discussing issues and offering proposals that will actually improve the lives of most Americans.”
Only time will tell if he will succumb to supporters or opponents regarding same-sex marriages. Hopefully, during the next four years of his administration, he demonstrates integrity, trust and honesty to the American people.
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