Prop 8 Trial Started Today!

In my life I’ve had many spe­cial friends who are gay or les­bian.  So has my wife, Donna.   These friends are all hon­est, hard-working peo­ple, many of whom have raised or are rais­ing happy fam­i­lies.  Many have made impor­tant con­tri­bu­tions to advanc­ing and sup­port­ing the human and civil rights of all peo­ple, includ­ing peo­ple with dis­abil­i­ties.  It is no sur­prise, there­fore, that we have been happy to vote for mea­sures which would allow same sex cou­ples to marry and have opposed mea­sures which deny such rights.

Today marks the open­ing of a new fed­eral case which, if suc­cess­ful, would over­turn California’s 2008 ban on such mar­riages.  I was eagerly look­ing for­ward to being able to fol­low the argu­ments of both sides in this trial, par­tic­u­larly when it looked as if the pro­ceed­ings were going to be videoed and dis­trib­uted via YouTube.   But that option has been blocked for now.   So, if you have not seen any press reports yet, here’s a good sum­ma­tion from the New York Times:

Sharp Words Open Cal­i­for­nia Same-Sex Mar­riage Case