Local opponents and supporters of Proposition 8 are speaking out about the California Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the state ban on same sex marriage. KPBS reporter Katie Orr has reaction.
Members of San Diego’s gay community rallied in Balboa Park and Downtown in opposition to Prop. 8. Some community members voiced their determination to change the marriage ban. Others said it was a day of mourning for gay Californians. From Sacramento, San Diego State Senator Christine Kehoe called the court’s decision a deep disappointment.
“California has lost its lead in the fight for civil rights for all people and we are being overtaken by much smaller states and states that have, I guess, a far more conservative point of view in the common wisdom,” she says.
San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders says it’s a sad day when the Supreme Court says some Californians have the right to take equality away from others. But opponents of same sex marriage are calling the court’s decision a victory for the majority. Chris Clark is Pastor of the East Clairemont Baptist Church.
“It confirms to me and to over 7 million people in California that our vote really does matter and we can dictate and make law and we can be active in the democratic process,” he says.
Clark says supporting traditional marriage is not discriminatory. Members of the gay community are already planning to put a same sex marriage initiative on the ballot in 2010 to override Prop 8.
Katie Orr, KPBS News
