Sorry, Not Today Folks

I've been thinking a lot about those people on the corners waving their YES signs in my face. Today I was considering running an errand, picking up some essential piece of plastic upon which the quality of my life depends. I've decided to wait a few days to make that purchase. The self satisfied expressions on their faces is not a sight I care to take in this peaceful, post drizzly night morning on which I have been afforded an extra hour of time.
I do wonder, though, what aspect of traditional marriage they want to protect and preserve. Is it the high divorce rate? Is it the staggeringly high incidents of domestic violence and child abuse? Or are they protecting their fortress from liberation and joy and from people who have waited and organized and hoped for lifetimes that their time would come?
My current fantasy is that these 'traditional marriage' YES folk would suddenly become the minority. They would become the ten percent of the population and everyone would get to vote on whether or not the marriages of those ten percent would remain valid and whether or not that ten percent would ever again be allowed to legally marry. I think those YES folk would be pretty terrified.
It is so much easier to be self righteous when you're in the majority. In the majority it is so easy to forget that when you oppress one section of humanity you ultimately oppress yourself.

I'm Hooked

I admit it.  I'm hooked.  I can't go more than an hour or two without checking electoral vote websites and examining the latest battleground state statistics.  I'm constantly flipping channels searching for the latest news.   I hold my breath with every breaking story and blunder reported hoping it doesn't change a commanding lead.  The situation room, Hardball and Rachel Maddow are some of the places I find comfort.  I force myself (although I don't last very long) to listen to Fox news (noise) to check out what the competition is saying.  I go from being completely confident to worrying that not enough young people will vote.  I share any information  that makes a stronger case.  I am excited yet fearful.  While I hold down the home front, Tom will go to Nevada to help.  Like many others, I'm emotionally exhausted.  I can only imagine how my candidate feels...

More Clergy Ask You To Vote No

Daylight Savings

How many of you would like to see daylight savings time stay in year round? I, for one, do not relish the idea of darkness at 5:00 p.m. Why, it feels as though it's almost time to get ready for bed. Do you realize that our physical bodies go through a tremendous strain for about four weeks out of the year? I recently heard a media rumor that perhaps it's being taken into consideration by our government to keep daylight savings time year round. Wouldn't that be wonderful? No more changing all our clocks, DVD players, reprogramming our T.V. channels, etc. No more headlights at 5:00 p.m. We would have one more hour to accomplish our errands free of nightfall. What do you say? Should we petition our Assemblymen, Mayor, Senator, Representative, Congressman or our Governor for year round daylight savings?

Dorothy (Del) Martin: May 5, 1921 - August 27,2008

Del Martin devoted most of her life to championing on behalf of civil liberties, human dignity, feminism, and equality for all. She was born in San Francisco and she died in San Francisco. She and Phyllis Lyon lived together for over fifty years.
Del challenged misconceptions about gender and sexuality and fought against the criminalization of homosexuality. She helped create the Council on Religion and the Homosexual to lobby city lawmakers and reduce police harassment of gay men and women. She was an early member of the National Organization for Women (NOW) and worked to remove homophobia from that women's movement. She and Phyllis were the first same sex couple to join NOW with a 'couple's membership' rate. She led a campaign against the American Psychiatric Association to remove homosexuality from its classification of psychiatric disorders. In 1973 homosexuality was taken out of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. With the publication of 'Battered Wives' in 1976, Del Martin became a major catalyst for the movement against domestic violence. She became nationally know as an advocate for battered women. She co-founded the Coalition for Justice for Battered Women in 1975, La Casa de las Madres (a shelter for battered women) in 1976, and the California Coalition Against Domestic Violence in 1977. In 1976 Del was appointed Chair of the San Francisco Commission on the Status of Women. With Phyllis Lyon, Del Martin was given the Earl Warren Civil Liberties Award by the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California in 1990. That is the highest honor extended by the ACLU. In 1979 San Francisco health care providers established a clinic to provide area lesbians access to nonjudgmental, affordable health care. The clinic is called the Lyon-Martin Health Services. In 1995 Senator Dianne Feinstein named Del Martin as a delegate to the White House Conference on Aging. (Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi named Phyllis Lyon.) Together Martin and Lyon reminded thousands of people that homosexuals grow old, too, and must be included in all aging policies. The Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality gave Martin and Lyon their Outstanding Public Service Award in 1996.
Del Martin believed that "... nothing is ever accomplished by hiding in a dark corner." That belief guided her life.
In a life filled with astonishingly brave and selfless political acts on behalf of social justice, the last public and political act in Del Martin's long career took place on June 16, 2008.
On June 16, 2008, Del Martin married her partner of 55 years, Phyllis Lyon. With Phyllis holding her hand for support, Del cut the first slice of their wedding cake.
Del and Phyllis were the first couple to wed in San Francisco after the California Supreme Court recognized that marriage for same-sex couples is a fundamental right in a case brought by plaintiffs including Martin and Lyon.
Del Martin is survived by her daughter Kendra Mon, her son-in-law Eugene Lane, her granddaughter Lorraine Mon, her grandson Kevin Mon, her sister-in-law Patricia Lyon, and by her domestic partner of 55 years and legally wed spouse of 73 days Phyllis Lyon.

Doing Right Feels Good

There they were again full of hate and fear holding their signs encouraging passersby to vote in favor of taking away constitutional rights from at least 10% of the people in this state. This weekend things were a little different, though. Several people holding NO signs had joined the YES sign holders. The YES folk stood stony faced while the NO folk waved and smiled and seemed generally pleased to be standing outside holding signs encouraging passersby to support the constitution and equal rights for all.
Maybe the NO folk were happy. Maybe it just feels better to be championing for the common good instead of spreading hatred and fear and lies.
Those NO folks were, to me, the cavalry coming over the hill sounding bugle cries of hope.

To Have And To Hold