The death of amendment one in North Carolina
There is howling on the right, North Carolina's Amendment One, banning same sex marriage is dead, overturned. Some of the howling is that 61% of the populations will, those who voted in favor, has been discounted. That 61% number is plain wrong; nowhere near that number of residents in North Carolina voted for amendment one, however the fact that anyone voted for it is disturbing.
Those on the right are angry and perhaps hurt. Their hurt while misguided and unjustified cannot compare to a lifetime of marginalization that my community has endured. I remember vividly the day amendment one passed and the excruciating agony that I felt in the realization that people who I knew, loved, trusted might have voted in a manner to hurt me. Many people who voted for the amendment believe that GLBT people somehow choose to be what they are. Its no more a choice than skin color, hair color or gender but even if it is a choice; it is a personal one, and the majority has no right, according to the US Constitution to abridge that right or choice.
So today, I feel better knowing that it's over for marriage inequality. For me though its too late. My partner died fourteen years ago and because we weren't married, because it wasn't legal, the financial ramifications on top of the heart break were very devastating. The fact that John's family felt that they could bully me, and did, though we were well prepared legally for his death, made our relationship and partnership less valid. Being able to marry would have added civil validity to our cause. So today I'm happy knowing that in North Carolina a same sex couple will never again have to face what I faced.
