Same-Sex Marriage: a Major step forward for equality!

by Dave Bernt

SAN FRANCISCO— On Feb. 12 the city and county of San Francisco began issuing marriage licensees to same-sex couples, setting in motion a furious national debate over the basic rights of gay, lesbian, and trans-gender people. Over 3000 same-sex couples from across the country have now been married at San Francisco's City Hall.

The actions of San Francisco, begun by a directive from the office of Mayor Gavin Newsom, were met with seething homophobic reaction from ultra-right bigots across the nation. The marriages also received condemnation from prominent Republicans and Democrats alike, including all the major Democratic candidates for president.

Mayor Newsom issued the directive for marriages after the issue had been raised by the Feb. 4 Massachusetts Supreme Court, ruling that denying same-sex couples the right to marry violated that state’s constitutional provisions against discrimination.

The Alliance Defense Fund and the Center for Marriage Law, two homophobic organizations, have sued the city and asked the courts to stop San Francisco from issuing licenses. The attorney general of California has also asked the Supreme Court to rule on the legality of the marriages.

The city of San Francisco filed a lawsuit against the state, arguing that, as in Massachusetts, current California law prohibiting same-sex marriage violates the state’s constitutional provisions against discrimination. Same-sex marriages have been repeated in several other counties across the nation. In a county in New Mexico, several marriages licensed were issued but then ruled void by the state attorney general.

Mayor Jason West of New Paltz, N.Y. personally married 25 same-sex couples there and was arrested and charged with a misdemeanor count of officiating wedding ceremonies for couples with no licenses. On the same day, the New York attorney general argued that New York state law prohibited same sex marriages—but that such marriages performed in other states should be recognized in New York.

The issue spread to Oregon on March 3 when the county officials in Portland joined San Francisco in issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. In response, President Bush and several law-makers have come out in favor of a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage in the United States.

The events of the past month from Massachusetts to San Francisco have put discrimination against gays and lesbians center stage. The simple act of marrying same-sex couples, giving them the same rights as heterosexual couples, has exposed the deep rooted homophobia of the U.S. political establishment.

The right to marry is a basic question of equality. There are over a thousand legal benefits married couples are entitled to that same-sex couples are denied. Everything from health insurance benefits to tax breaks are systematically denied to same-sex couples.

Opponents of same-sex marriage argue that marriage is by definition between a man and a woman. This definition is a religious one, and has no right to be incorporated into law, on grounds of the separation of church and state.

All people, regardless of sexual orientation, deserve the right to define their relationships as they choose, and have the rights to the same legal and financial benefits as heterosexual couples.

While the Republican Party has been on the offensive in attacking same-sex marriage, Democrats have made it clear that they too are a roadblock to full equality. Newsom, a conservative Democrat, under pressure from the large and highly organized San Francisco gay community and looking to improve his image among the city’s progressive population (he narrowly edged out Green Party mayoral candidate Mat Gonzalez in the November elections), put in motion the marriages here. The rest of his party, however, has been quick to oppose his moves.

Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry has made it clear he opposes same-sex marriage, even calling for a constitutional amendment in his home state of Massachusetts to overturn the recent Supreme Court ruling there.

Even Rep. Barney Frank, an openly gay congressman, denounced the San Francisco marriages, saying the time "wasn't right."

It was also Democratic President Bill Clinton who signed the Defense of Marriage Act. The DOMA was a "state rights bill," reminiscent of racist anti-civil-rights legislation of past decades, that allowed states the right to deny recognition of other states’ same-sex marriages.

The DOMA also defined marriage as between a man and women for the purposes of federal law. Thirty-two Democratic Party Senators joined notorious reactionary Sen. Jesse Helms, who authored the bill, in voting for DOMA.

The homophobic prejudices of the political establishment and American society are rooted in a social system where an elite few rule over an exploited majority. The elites who run this country depend on promoting and spreading bigotry of all kinds to divert the exploited masses from identifying the real roots of their misery.

The elimination of homophobic prejudices and reactionary anti-gay laws such as marriage restrictions is important for the oppressed everywhere. The same-sex marriages in San Francisco and other smaller towns are a major blow to the fanatical right-wing homophobes and a major step forward for the struggle for the gay and lesbian movement. This movement must continue to mobilize for gay rights against the bigots of both major parties.