Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Last Night: A Mixed Bag For the Gays

So Prop 1 passed in Maine last night, repealing legislatively enacted gay marriage in that state. It sucks and even though I don't live in Maine and I'm not fixin' to marry anybody, I'm still bummed this morning because it's a very personal issue and every time one of these things passes, which is to say every time so far, it feels like a punch in the gut. I think that's why emotions got so heated in California after Prop 8 passed. It's easy for people to say the gays should just calm down and accept the will of the majority, but when these initiatives pass there is a real feeling of betrayal. Your friends and neighbors profess to love and accept you, but when they are sealed the voting cubicle their true feelings come out.

That said, there was some good news for gays last night that isn't getting as much attention. Washington state approved a referendum that would would expand domestic partnership benefits to that state's gays.

Also, it was a good night for gays running for office in urban hellholes, including my own. Not that long ago being openly gay would have been a serious liability in running for office in these places, and now it doesn't even seem to be much of a factor.

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