San Diego Supports Same Sex Marriage
Nearly 62,000 San Diegans are part of households led by a same-sex couple, according to a U.S. Census Bureau survey conducted two years ago (as reported by the San Diego Union Tribune). So what does this mean to San Diegans? Am I really saying that everyone in San Diego county supports same sex marriage? No, but please read on.
Between February 12 and March 11, 2004, the newly-elected mayor of San Francisco, Gavin Newsom, issued a directive to the city-county clerk to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, who were then allowed to marry. The weddings were halted on March 11, 2004 by the California Supreme Court, by which time about 4,000 same-sex couples had been issued marriage licenses. Lawsuits followed, and on August 12, 2004, the California Supreme Court voided all of the marriage licenses.
Meanwhile, while many other states were trying to outlaw same-sex marriages and/or civil unions, several states took a stand for equal (or at least almost equal) rights for gay couples:
- On May 17, 2004, Massachusetts became the first state in the union to issue same-sex marriage licenses.
- On April 20, 2005, Connecticut legalized same-sex civil unions.
- On October 25, 2006, the New Jersey Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of marriage equality, although they didn’t decide whether to rewrite marriage laws or write civil union laws for same-sex couples; they passed it to the legislature to take action
- On April 21, 2007, Washington legalized domestic partnerships, which went into law on July 22, 2007
- On May 9, 2007, Oregon legalized domestic partnerships, which will go into law on January 1, 2008
- On May 31, 2007, New Hampshire legalized civil unions, which will go into law on January 1, 2008
Back in California, on March 14, 2005, Judge Richard Kramer of San Francisco County Superior Court ruled that California’s ban on gay marriage is unconstitutional.
That same year, Jerry Sanders established his stance on civil unions during his first mayoral campaign. At that time, he expressed his preference for civil unions, partnerships between same-sex couples that offer some, but not all, of the legal protections given to those who marry.
An appeals court overturned Judge Kramer’s decision in 2006, and by December, the state Supreme Court had opted to take up the broader question of whether gays and lesbians should be allowed to marry.
With the California Supreme Court about to hear the issue, San Diego Councilwoman Toni Atkins pushed the city of San Diego to take a stand on same-sex marriage. At a hearing packed by nearly 200 people, the City Council voted 5-3 on Tuesday to send the brief to the state Supreme Court.
Mayor Jerry Sanders then publicly repeated his preference for civil unions, and vowed to use his veto power to block the council’s move. However, later that day, “the enormity” of the council’s action hit him, Sanders later explained, and he sought the counsel of a small group of friends and neighbors. They gathered at his Kensington home throughout the evening. Meanwhile, he spoke by phone to his daughter Lisa, a North Park resident in her early 20s who also happens to be a lesbian.
On Wednesday, Sanders reversed his position. He called a press conference where he choked back tears as he announced,
“In the end, I couldn’t look any of them in the face and tell them that their relationships — their very lives — were any less meaningful than the marriage that I share with my wife Rana.”
Here is his full explanation:
Mayor Sanders then signed the City Council resolution, thereby making it official that San Diego supports the challenge to California’s gay marriage ban. As a result of Sanders’ action, San Diego can join Los Angeles, San Jose and Long Beach in signaling support for gay marriage.
I want to personally commend Mayor Sanders for his candor, his willingness to open his mind and home to hear all sides of this important issue, and his courage in doing what he knows to be decent and right. Mayor Sanders, I applaud you.
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