The Shape of Things To Come???

Last week may very well turn out to have been a landmark in the Gay Rights Movement when the California Supreme Court overturned the ban on gay marriage in the State of California. The decision struck down two laws - one in 1977 and a more recent one from a referendum in 2000. This followed the appeals of a handful of parties, and the city of San Francisco who wanted to recognise gay marriage and, indeed, had done so for a short time in recent years. Given that California is often regarded as a gateway state for the rest of the US, in that laws that pass there often come to pass countrywide, this is considered a big step forward. As the most populous state in the US (55 million people of 350 million), this is by no means small potatoes. Could this be the start of something bigger? It is hoped so but then let's not get over-excited here.

Yes, the ban has been overturned and, given that it is based on the California consititution it cannot be appealed to the Supreme Court of the US. Unfortunately, though, the ruling itself is potentially fraught with a number of problems. While the justices wrote that there is no legitimate basis to discriminate based on sexual preference, a point also raised was that the people of California at this time clearly did not favour gay marriage given the results of the previous referendum. Of course, there are no proceedings underway to add a referendum for the November 2008 elections favouring an amendment to the CA consitution barring gay marriage. Thus, the fight is likely not over. As for my views, i think this is a good thing, but i do agree that this coming in such a way is likely to cause a lot more problems. What happens is such a constitutional amendment is passed? Will the courts be brought in again? Ultimately, whilst i am for the idea of gay marriage, i also do not like the idea of the courts telling the people how they should live. And in other respects, given the upcoming presidential election, the timing of this decision now brings it to the forefront yet again - which may turn out to do more harm than good. I guess we can all just watch this space and see.