A Call to Action in CA

All of a sudden, I seem to be all about marriage! I usually try to steer clear of the same-sex marriage debate, since it is already taking up so much time and energy within the contemporary family law community and I am convinced that some of us need to remain focused on securing rights and protections for non-marital families with children -- including single parents, co-parents, and a variety of other truly non-traditional family models -- while so much of our community is focused on marriage equality. But we are in a historic moment in CA when action is needed, SO .... California's is the only Legislature in the country to vote in same-sex marriage. They voted it in last year, and Gov. Schwarzeneger vetoed, saying that the courts need to decide whether same-sex couples in CA should be allowed to wed. (This is completely backwards, as I wrote in my blog then -- the courts are constantly arguing that a change this big must be brought about through the democratic process, and the opposition rants and raves about "activist judges" who act like legislators to bring about social change that should be brought about at the ballot box instead -- but then when a progressive (and, frankly, heroic) Legislature actually uses the democratic process to enact same-sex marriage, the Governor vetoes it because it wasn't brought about by the courts. Can you spell "hypocrisy"??) Well, on Friday California's Legislature again voted for marriage equality, at a critical moment when the California Supreme Court is wading through legal briefs and preparing to hear oral argument on the issue. And again, Governor Schwarzeneger is threatening a veto. A strong public showing in support of marriage equality now could make a huge difference to the California Supreme Court -- put bluntly, it will let them know that we have their backs. If you ever sign petitions or make phone calls or write letters to elected officials, this would be an excellent time to do it! Let Governor Schwarzeneger know that the People of California have acted, through our democratically-elected officials, to support marriage equality in our state, and it is time for him to get out of the way! For a full article on the marriage vote, and to find out how to get involved, go to http://www.eqca.org/site/apps/nl/content2.asp?c=9oINKWMCF&b=40337&ct=4401763.