If you are gay, it should be obvious why a ban on same-sex marriage affects you.
If you are straight, however, you might not fully understand how you are affected by the many state constitutional "amendments" which have banned same-sex marriage by popular vote.
Let's start with a small refresher...
Marriage is a legal agreement which is defined by many laws, both state and federal. It has never been defined by who is not allowed to get married.
It is the individual's choice as to whom she enters into this legal agreement with. It is not up to the public at large to limit this choice, either by sex, race, or any other arbitrary trait. If the two people involved are mutually agreed and capable of giving their consent, the public at large CANNOT deny them access to a marriage partnership.
The precedent set by ballot initiatives banning same-sex marriage is that group rights trump individual rights. The courts overseeing these initiatives are failing to protect the individual right to choose the marriage partner an individual wants, and instead are allowing a majority to specify the type of person an individual is permitted to marry.
They are failing to uphold the 14th amendment, which states that all citizens are to be treated equally under the law. They are allowing gay people to be excluded from legal marriage agreements by popular vote.
This negates the entire purpose of a constitution. A majority does not get to vote on the civil rights of a minority.
Ever.
If you are heterosexual, you should be concerned about this because the same religious folks who are meddling in the lives of gay people today have a long, LONG track record of finding new scapegoats to attack. It is only a matter of time before they attempt to intrude into the personal affairs of YOUR life; only a matter of time before YOU are part of a group they feel strong enough to persecute, and so, you should be deeply worried about the erosion of constitutional provisions which keep them at bay.
The discrimination they have written into state constitutions from coast to coast MUST be stripped out, and the judges who fail to understand what a constitution is for MUST be routed from their positions.
Those who support marriage apartheid must be firmly but gently reminded of where their life ends and another person's life begins, like the wayward children they are.
PROPOSITION 8:
Proposition 8 is the constitutional revision which eliminated marriage equality in California. The state constitution, in its current form, was deemed in violation of the 14th amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The finding came from the right honourable Judge Vaughn R. Walker on Wednesday, August 4th, 2010. Judge Walker found that proposition 8 discriminated both on the basis of sex and sexual orientation, and found that sexual orientation is a suspect class similar to race or gender. He also found that separate institutions of legal partnership cannot be equal.
Apparently, proponents of marriage apartheid made a "limited factual presentation" lol! (Page 8, line 23).
Here is the judge's finding in full. Some of it is actually pretty funny. I don't agree with his use of "morality" as a byword for religious belief (why refer to something as its opposite?), but I think it's fairly well-reasoned otherwise:
https://ecf.cand.uscourts.gov/...
The case is most likely on its way to the US Supreme Court. For more information, visit:
http://www.eqca.org
... or if you really want to protect marriage:
http://rescuemarriage.org
If a boycott is more your style, you might try avoiding Mormon-owned and operated businesses like Jetblue, SkyWest, Marriott, Cinemark / Century / CineArts / Tinseltown theaters
...and the state of Utah.
Here is a good boycott list:
http://www.afterellen.com/...
