Monday, May 19, 2008
Editorial: Gay marriage remains far from Virginia
California becomes the second state to uphold constitutional equality for same-sex couples.
From the RoundTable blog
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Americans who passionately oppose same-sex marriage will use last week's California Supreme Court decision overturning that state's ban as a rallying point for upcoming elections. They will be right about one thing: The California decision is bigger than one state. It is part of the slow trudge toward equality for all citizens.
The California ruling is the broadest such ruling on same-sex marriage. Not only may California's gay residents wed there, but so may couples from other states.
Yet if any Virginians choose to fly to California and exchange vows, they should not expect much when they get home. Virginia is among the 26 states that have amended their constitutions to treat gays as second-class citizens. A California marriage certificate issued to two women will mean nothing here.
Virginia's gay couples should continue to do what they already do. Live together, raise children, mow the lawn and let people see with their own eyes that the Earth does not shake when two men kiss. A California marriage certificate might reinforce that message, but it is not necessary for it.
Someday, America will recognize the folly of preventing loving couples from sharing all the privileges and responsibilities of wedlock. A hastily filed lawsuit in Virginia based on a California wedding will not speed -- and could postpone -- that day's arrival. Eliminating bigotry takes time.
Sixty years ago, the California Supreme Court struck a similarly bold note when it overturned a state ban on interracial marriage. It took the rest of the nation nearly two decades to catch up with the U.S. Supreme Court finally ruling in Loving v. Virginia. Today, only the worst racists bat an eye at a mixed-race couple.
Last week's California decision echoed many of the ideas in the 1967 Loving decision. The language in both is striking and universal, invoking principles of liberty and equality.
Yet shameless people more interested in politics than justice will point to California and other places that respect human dignity more than Virginia does. They will raise unfounded fears that same-sex marriages will ruin the institution for others, even as heterosexuals continue to do so much to erode that foundation themselves.
Wise voters will ignore anti-gay invective. There are plenty of real challenges confronting the nation. A candidate's position on this issue means as little in Virginia as a California marriage certificate.
