Spring Break
One Step Forward, One Step Back
An HBS LGBT on the Passage of Prop 8
Justin Wieland (ND), Contributing Writer
Issue date: 11/24/08 Section: News
"Marriage is the most natural state of man, and the state in which you will find solid happiness." (Benjamin Franklin)
On the same day Americans elected their first black President, Californians approved Proposition 8. The measure amended the State's constitution with a simple statement: "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California." The title of the ballot initiative, which voters read as they considered the measure in the voting booth, was more explicit in its discriminatory purpose: "Proposition 8: Eliminates right of same sex couples to marry."
The news of this event struck me as a total surprise because until the vote, I genuinely thought that the United States had turned the corner on gay rights. As a gay male with 10 years of service in the US Air Force, I have learned to be patient with public attitudes towards homosexuality. But even in an environment where homophobia is legally sanctioned, attitudes are starting to change and dramatically so. The obvious reason is that despite its conservative bent, our military force is a reflection of society at large. It is clear to me that the youth of America have turned the page on gay rights even if their parents have not. If and when President-Elect Obama brings an end to the absurd "Don't ask, Don't tell" policy for military service, he may face some lingering resistance from the most senior levels of the Armed Forces. But the reaction from the core of the fighting force - those 18 to 24 year old men and women who serve on the front lines in Iraq and Afghanistan - is more likely to be one of indifference, if not surprise that the policy had not been overturned earlier.
Confident that my assessment of attitudes within the US military must certainly reflect progress in society at large, I never dreamed that Proposition 8 had a chance. When a number of friends urged me to contribute to the campaign efforts against the measure, I regrettably took little notice. Of all the places in America where one might still need to organize and advocate for gay rights, California did not seem to be a likely candidate. I was foolishly complacent and suspect that the amendment passed in some part because others felt the same way.
On the same day Americans elected their first black President, Californians approved Proposition 8. The measure amended the State's constitution with a simple statement: "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California." The title of the ballot initiative, which voters read as they considered the measure in the voting booth, was more explicit in its discriminatory purpose: "Proposition 8: Eliminates right of same sex couples to marry."
The news of this event struck me as a total surprise because until the vote, I genuinely thought that the United States had turned the corner on gay rights. As a gay male with 10 years of service in the US Air Force, I have learned to be patient with public attitudes towards homosexuality. But even in an environment where homophobia is legally sanctioned, attitudes are starting to change and dramatically so. The obvious reason is that despite its conservative bent, our military force is a reflection of society at large. It is clear to me that the youth of America have turned the page on gay rights even if their parents have not. If and when President-Elect Obama brings an end to the absurd "Don't ask, Don't tell" policy for military service, he may face some lingering resistance from the most senior levels of the Armed Forces. But the reaction from the core of the fighting force - those 18 to 24 year old men and women who serve on the front lines in Iraq and Afghanistan - is more likely to be one of indifference, if not surprise that the policy had not been overturned earlier.
Confident that my assessment of attitudes within the US military must certainly reflect progress in society at large, I never dreamed that Proposition 8 had a chance. When a number of friends urged me to contribute to the campaign efforts against the measure, I regrettably took little notice. Of all the places in America where one might still need to organize and advocate for gay rights, California did not seem to be a likely candidate. I was foolishly complacent and suspect that the amendment passed in some part because others felt the same way.
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