Vote NO on Prop 8
Oct 29, 2008 Announcements
I had planned to talk about Proposition 8 yesterday, as it would have been exactly a week to the US Presidential Election. But better late than never, I suppose.
Well, I am joining (not that I am as important, but every voice matters, I believe) a number of public personalities - and individuals - to speak out against Proposition 8 (or Prop 8). On Nov 4, when the people of United States vote for their new President (*fingers crossed* Obama, Obama, Obama), California will also be voting on Proposition 8, among others.
Prop 8 is a 2008 California General Election Ballot initiative measure titled:
Eliminates Right of Same-Sex Couples to Marry
If passed, this measure would allow for the California constitution to be changed, with this phrase “only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California” added.
Among the people (and organisations) who have spoken out against Prop 8 (yes, those of you voting in California need to vote NO to oppose discrimination - weird how the world works, huh?) include Ellen Degeneres (who got married recently to wife Portia De Rossi), US comic Margaret Cho, Ugly Betty America Fererra, Apple Inc (the company just donated US100,000 to the campaign), Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama and his running mate Joe Biden among others. TV personalities are also speaking out against Prop 8, like in the video below.
Some others - organisations and individiduals - who are saying NO on Prop 8 are listed here. College students too are out in force.
In August, the Los Angeles Times explained why people should vote NO on Prop 8.
“Proposition 8… would eliminate the fundamental right to same-sex marriage. The very act of denying gay and lesbian couples the right to marry – traditionally the highest legal and societal recognition of a loving commitment – by definition relegates them and their relationship to second class status.”
But Prop 8 is not just a sexuality issue - it is about fundemental human rights, and treating citizens fairly. Let this video explain.
No on 8 dispels some myths about Prop 8.
And why should it matter to someone like me, who doesn’t even live there in the US, let alone California? Because change needs to start somewhere, and because a yes win on Prop 8 will have detrimental effects on LGBT rights specifically, and human rights in general.
I join those personalities, organisations, my friends who live in California, and others like me who don’t live in the US also because this is an issue of fairness. The same way I fought, alongside with my friends, peers and contemporaries in Western Australia, for many things back when I was studying there even though - as a foreign student - I was not really affected by most things, and would eventually leave.
A dear friend to me back while I was in Australia recently created this video in support of NO on 8.
Nelson is Australian but now lives in South Africa, yet he feels strongly enough about the issue to take a stand. I am taking a stand too. I am a NO on 8 person. And if you’re voting on Nov 4 in California, I hope you are too.
9.33pm Malaysian time (+8 GMT)
Tags: america ferrera, apple inc, Barack Obama, Elections, ellen degeneres, human rights, Joe Biden, nelson clemente, no on prop 8, portia de rossi, prop 8, proposition 8, yes on prop 8
