Analysis of the political fate of a single U.S. or Californian policy proposal made at any time since 1945
The state of California passed an amendment in 2008 called the proposition 8. In America, the gas and lesbians have been fighting so hard so that the same sex marriages will be passed into. This fight seemed like it had won in 2008, when California had passed a law that would allow for the same sex marriages in state. This victory however was short lived because the proposition 8 was passed to overrule the marriage by claiming that it was unconstitutional. The bill was passed by the voters of a margin that is claimed to have been 52 to 48.
This proposition was made into a constitution amendment in November 2008. The passing of the proposition came as a shock to many people especially those who had already being married. They had no idea about their fate as a married couple. According to the statistics, the gays and lesbians as well as their supports started to blame the African American community. This is because according to the polls it showed that 70% of the black American or African Americans had voted in support of proposition 8. The other people who were also blamed were the Mormons who were claimed to have given their support through the financial means (Vives). According to people, the proposition was a clear indication that the people in California were not in support of the same sex marriages.
In looking at California, it is evident that for gay people the environment is friendly in that the people do not have much issues when it comes to gay people in fact they seem to be in support however, when it comes to marriages that is when they draw their lines. In looking at the statistics it shows that the support for same sex marriage has grown but the favor is below 50 percent. The ruling of the proposition 8 is claimed to have had the similar provision of that of the proposition 22. This proposition made it clear that marriage is supposed to be the union between a man and a woman. The political leaders have also come in defense for the gay and lesbians in the state while there are those who supported the proposition. One of the major factors that can be seen from the proposition passing was because of religion (Lewis & Gossett).
Religion makes it hard for some of the people to accept the same sex marriages. This is because according to their teachings they are taught that a man and a woman are the ones who are supposed to marry under the blessings of the Lord. The policy hard a hard time to be supported by the political leaders. The main reason for saying this is that some of the leaders did not support it openly while others supported. The reason why the policy was not able to succeed was because of the controversy it brought to the nation and many people were not in favor of the proposition since it is claimed to have been unconstitutional.
The views of the proposition 8
The proposition 8 got a lot of funding from both the supporters and those who opposed the proposition. It has being estimated that both sides got over thirty million dollars for the campaign. The supporters of the proposition got most of their funding from the religious groups in the state. According to the arguments that were made by the supporters of the proposition was that, the institution of marriage should only be between a man and a woman. They also stated that when the marriage is passed it would teach the children that being gay is okay. These things are what caused many people to pass the constitution. Some of the political leaders that were in support of the proposition were john McCain the senator who had run for presidency.
The other notable political figure who supported the proposition was Newt Gingrich who was a former speaker of the house. Mitt Romney supported the proposition and he was able to fund the campaign. The political leaders who opposed the proposition openly were President Barack Obama, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Joseph Biden. Arnold Schwarzenegger is claimed to have opposed the proposition by voting for the removal of the proposition twice. In looking at the political leaders that opposed the proposition it shows that most of the democrats were the ones who opposed the proposition. The republicans most of them voted for the proposition to be passed.
When the proposition was passed, there were many events that occurred. The gays and lesbians in the state were outraged and angered in that some of the ones who had already married filed for lawsuits. There were people who came together in order to protest the ruling. There are many cases that were taken to the courts such as the Strauss v Horton.
Strauss v Horton
This case was filled by some of the gay couples who had been married prior to the expulsion of the marriage. The case was between the couples and the government. According to the records it shows that, the number of lawsuits that were taken to the courts was three, which was heard by the supreme courts.
The three cases that were to be heard were regarding the revision of the proposition, that the proposition was violating their rights to marry and that the proposition was invalidating the marriages that already existed. For the gay couples who had married when the same sex marriage was made legal had a hard time knowing their fate with their marriages. When it came to the lawsuit that stated that the proposition was a revision because it was looking at the old constitutional amendments that had already been made. This lawsuit was easily revoked because it had no merits. The other lawsuit about the existing marriages if were still valid. For the couples this was one of their most feared cases because they thought the marriage would be annulled under the law.
According to jerry Brown, who was the California attorney general was sure that the marriages would still be in effect (Dolan). The other legal experts however, were not so sure. Relief came for the couples when the supporters of the proposition 8 made amendments in the proposition in order to nullify the marriages that had already occurred. The case lost in that the stated that the proposition was valid because of the fact that it was voted by the majority of people. It was also stated that the marriages that had already occurred would remain valid. After this, there was a massive protest that occurred.
Cases sent to courts
The other well-known case after the proposition 8 was passed and other lawsuits had failed was that of the Hollingsworth v. Perry. Prior to this case there were a number of cases that were filed such as Perry. Schwarzenegger and Perry v. Brown. These lawsuits were formed after the plaintiffs were denied license of marriage. The couples were Kristine Perry and Sandra Stier as well as Jeffrey Zarrilo and Paul Katami. These couples filed for the lawsuits against the state as well as the county clerks. These two couples got assistance from the people who had lost the case of Strauss v. Horton. The case was supposed was going to prove about the gay discrimination that was caused by the proposition 8.
Perry. Schwarzenegger
Perry v. Schwarzenegger case is stated to have been filed in San Francisco at the federal district court. The judge called Vaughn walker who was from the district chief courtroom ruled that the proposition was unconstitutional in that he believes that the same sex couples have every right to get married. According to the ruling tit was also claimed that the equal rights protection clause was undermined when the couples were denied to marry. In the ruling walker seemed to have uplifted the ban, which would have made it legal for people to marry in 2010. This decision was however, thwarted by the United states of appeals for the ninth Circuit (Egelko). The circuit postponed the stay in that same sex marriages could still not be performed due the appeal that was pending.
Perry v. Brown
The Perry v. brown case was an appeal case after the Perry v. Schwarzenegger case. According to the apple case, the California supreme courts came up with the conclusion that the discrepancy in the proposition 8 had its merit and that the people have a right to defend it (Surdin).
Hollingsworth v. Perry
In the case of Hollingsworth v. Perry, the judges were able to come up with the conclusion that some of the proponents of the proposition 8 were that they had no merits in that it was unconstitutional. According to the judges, they agreed that the ruling of judge walker was justified and that the proposition was unlawful (Socarides). The cases that were brought forward had many discrepancies and were unlawful. This was a historic ruling for the same sex couples in California. The ruling made it easy for the restoration of the marriages between the same sex couples. The legality of this ruling made California one of the thirteen states in America where gay marriages could be conducted.
The aftermath of the ruling
The aftermath of the ruling shows that the people of the nation had mixed reactions about the ruling. The political leaders most of them were pleased with the ruling and claimed that it was about time that the proposition was considered to be unconstitutional (Winters). They also stated that the proposition was had not meaning or purpose for the nation apart from undermining the dignity of the people who are gays and lesbians. The people opposing the proposition were overjoyed because now the people who are of same sex relationships will be able to live in the society and be treated the same way the heterosexual couples were being treated. This will be good for the children who are growing up they will not grow with the sense of hate and shame of homosexuality.
Children are some of the things that are making the people who want the proposition to stick. This is because they believe that society is made up of a family in which the mother and father are the ones getting married and when the marriage between the same sex couples is passed then it will educate the children that being gay is acceptable while to them it is not. This is the reason why this people have gone on to try and appealed the decision that was made by the courts (Lewis & Gossett). The legal challenges that were made were dismissed by the courts thereby making the homosexuals in California to be able to get married without having any problems. These events occurred in 2013 when same sex marriages were made legal in California (Surdin).
In conclusion, the proposition 8 policy created a lot of controversy both legally and politically. There have been many struggles for equality when it came to marriages. In 2008, when the same sex marriages had been approved there was the formation of the proposition 8 which was used to stop same sex marriages. The gay community had a lot of support however; they were unable to prevent the voters from passing the proposition. The votes had a margin of 52-48 ruling. When it came to the funding both the supporters of the proposition and those who opposed were generous and produced a lot of money for both sides.
The political leaders especially from the democratic side opposed the proposition while the republicans most of them were in support of the proposition. The proposition was however, said to be unconstitutional by the courts after the ruling in the case of Hollingsworth v. Perry. There are many reasons that caused the policy to not be adopted in the political arena. One of the main reasons why because the politicians had conflicting opinions on the matter.
Work cited
Dolan, Maura. “California Supreme Court rejects bid to halt same-sex marriages.” 15 July 2013. <http://inlandpolitics.com/blog/2013/07/16/latimes-california-supreme-court-rejects-bid-to-halt-same-sex-marriages/>. Web
Egelko, Bob. “State's top court strikes down marriage ban.” 16 May 2008. <http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/State-s-top-court-strikes-down-marriage-ban-3213394.php>. Web
Lewis Gregory and Gossett, Charles “Why Did Californians Pass Proposition 8? Stability and Change in Public Support for Same-Sex Marriage.” 2012. <http://works.bepress.com/cwgossett/1/>. Web
Socarides, Richard. “Fighting, and Winning, Against Prop 8.” April 19 2014. <http://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/fighting-and-winning-against-prop-8>. Web
Surdin, Ashley. “Legality of Same-Sex Marriage Ban Challenged.” 11 November 2008. <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/10/AR2008111002874.html>. Web
Vives, Ruben. “Mormon Church to be fined by state political commission over Proposition 8.” 8 JUNE 2010. <http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/06/mormon-church-to-be-fined-by-state-political-commission-over-proposition-8.html>. Web
Winters, Michael. “California's Prop. 8 ban on same-sex marriage ruled unconstitutional.” 4 Aug 2010. <http://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/post/2010/08/calif-ban-on-same-sex-marriage-prop-8-ruled-unconstitutional/1#.VH3_6_ldU40>. Web
