Prop. 8: The Tragedy

In the wake of Proposition 8 in California, and the musical short that ridicules it, there's a larger question to consider

Over the last couple of days the Web has been all abuzz about a musical production called Prop. 8: the Musical that ridicules the forces that successfully fought the Constitutional right of gays to marry in California. Now you may agree or disagree with these sentiments; for the purposes of this article, it doesn’t really matter. The point I’m trying to make is that what happened in California sets a very dangerous precedent, and if it’s allowed to stand it could have ramifications that, even if you don’t find them frightening, are certainly gravely serious.

California Dreaming

Just what did happen in California, anyway? Well, Wikipedia puts it this way:

"Proposition 8 was a California ballot proposition that changed the state Constitution to restrict the definition of marriage to a union between a man and a woman and eliminated the right of same-sex couples to marry."

Of course, Wikipedia had a lot more to say; briefly, when the California Supreme Court said that gay marriage was legal, the opponents of same sex marriage mobilized and managed to get Proposition 8 on the ballot, which would change the state constitution and trump anything that the California Supreme Court might have to say about it. They deemed this to be a more effective approach than taking it to court again, since Supreme Courts don’t often reverse themselves. Occasionally, but not often.

They were right. It was a close vote, but the proposition passed; gay marriage is no longer legal in California.

I could go on about how the vote went, how the demographics split, how urban voters compared to rural voters, how the vote split racially, and so on and so forth; but that’s not what this article is about. (Read the Wikipedia entry if you want that stuff.) But before I get to the heart of the matter, a bit more background:

The play’s the thing

A few days ago Prop.8: the Musical started to makle itself known on the Web. It stars Jack Black as Jesus, John C. Reilly as a stuffed suit and Neil Patrick Harris as...well, as just some guy. The musical was conceived of and written by Marc Shaiman, who also wrote Hairspray and songs for South Park: Bigger, Longer, Uncut. The show runs about three minutes, and in that three minutes it does a better job of summarizing the history of Proposition 8 than I ever could.

The musical short manages to point out the hypocrisies involved in the debate, but I’m not going to talk about them. Nor am I going to talk about what’s right or wrong about same-sex marriage. If you want my opinions, ask for them. (On second thought, don’t; I support marriage, no matter what genders are involved, and I think that Proposition 8 was a load of fetid dingo’s kidneys. But that’s just an opinion, and in any case it’s not what I’m getting to.)

But all this eight-is-evil stuff is after-the-fact and doesn't come in time to make a difference; the votes are in and the supporters of same-sex marriage lost. The amendment to redefine "marriage" as something between a man and a woman is now the law of the land in California. Gay couples who had the right to marry (and many of them did so) have had that right taken away. And that’s what I’m writing about.

What the Constitution gifteth...

When you think about it, democracy is all about the majority imposing its will on the minority. That’s what has happened here, in its purest form. I can’t think of any other time in U.S. history when a Constitutional amendment has been used to take rights away from a minority. Before Proposition 8, constitutional amendments have been used to clarify rights, to expand rights, to recognize rights...but not to take someone’s rights away. And if it can be done in California, what’s to stop it happening elsewhere? Or nationally? To anyone?

Once some people get the idea that it's OK to take rights away from you just by polling the electorate, where will they stop? Will they stop?

That is the danger of Proposition 8. It’s the very definition of the "slippery slope" theory. It says that if you’re group isn’t in the majority, and if the majority thinks that you’re doing something immoral, your behavior can be legislated against. Never mind that all previous efforts to legislate morality have mostly failed. (Remember Prohibition? I don't, because long before I was born people realized that it was a bad and unworkable idea.)

Proposition 8 is also a failure; it was from the start. Its supporters never thought they were going to change anyone’s behavior in any significant way (much as they might like to), they just wanted to deny gay people the same rights, privleges and responsibilities that everyone else is entitled to. (OK, so my own bias is showing through a bit. Couldn't help it.) And I’m not going to get into the rights and wrongs of their argument, no matter how strongly I may feel. That’s not what this article is about.

This article is about the fact that the basic civil rights of a large segment of the public have been put to a vote. The outcome of such a vote is, for the purposes of this article, irrelevant; the practice of curtailing people's rights in this manner is un-American.

Oh no, not again...

I don’t see any way to solve this dilemma without yet another Constitutional amendment, one that repeals Proposition 8. No state constitution, and certainly not the national Constitution, should be used in this way. But the law is now on the books, and frankly I don’t see all that much hope in current efforts to challenge Proposition 8 as unconstitutional due to its injustice, or on procedural grounds.

Whether or not Proposition 8 stands is, ultimately, up to the voters of California. However you feel about gay marriage, this is a Constitutional issue and each of us, whether we live in California or not, should decide it on those grounds.

Oh, and keep in mind that I don’t live in California and I’m not gay; but the point that I’ve been trying to make is that if Proposition 8 is let stand then it stands as a threat to the rights of individuals in all states, of all Americans, and it weakens the Constitution. Directly, the California Constitution, but indirectly the U.S. Constitution and those of the other 49 states.

I’d call that frightening. And gravely serious.

The Blues Viking


Further Reading (or viewing)

The musical short Prop. 8: The Musical is at Funny or Die

Wikipedia’s entry for Proposition 8

A New York Times article on the musical

The opinions here expressed are mine and if you don’t like them you can get your own damn blog.