Comments | blkandwhtcat: Yes We Did

blkandwhtcat

Yes We Did

Nov 16, 2008 04:18

It's been a very emotional time for me lately. Elation about Obama's victory was quickly tempered by the passage of Prop 8 in CA. I don't think I've ever before experienced such an intense range of emotion in such a short period of time.

But one thing is amazing, fantastic, ovewhelming - we elected Barack Obama as president of the United States of ( Read more... )

Comments 18

germansoulmate November 16 2008, 12:58:22 UTC

You have been very silent lately, Cat.

I think the only thing you can do about the passing of proposition 8 is keep fighting. I can feel and understand your disappointment.

blkandwhtcat November 17 2008, 01:33:28 UTC

Between campaigning and work, I just haven't had any free time for the last few months, so that's why I haven't been around. I'm hopelessly behind in email correspondence, and I can't begin to catch up on all the LJ posts that my friends list has made! It would take DAYS ( ... )

llvoncan November 16 2008, 13:51:04 UTC

I HAVE to believe that one day, and I'd sure like it to be soon, that ALL will have equal rights. That the Constitution, when it says ALL men are created equal, that ALL people will finally see exactly what that means. I do not think Obama will have an easy Presidency, but I want to see the changes he says he wants and plans to make. And the biggest one is that ALL people will be treated equally under the law.
And I still LOVE reading what you write.

blkandwhtcat November 17 2008, 01:45:19 UTC

Thanks Lois. Good to hear from you. You must be very proud of your state - pretty amazing to see NC and VA go blue for Obama. And kicking out Liddy Dole was great, too. Excellent job!

Yes, the prop 8 issue has been a real downer in an otherwise pretty awesome election cycle. It feels good to be an American right now, although gay Americans are still treated like second class citizens. I wonder at the kind of people who hate gays so much that they would deny parentless children homes with decent, loving people, just because they are gay, as they did in Arkansas. What kind of "christianity" is that?

flamencanyc November 16 2008, 13:56:45 UTC

I just hope we can all keep up the LGBTQ rights activist momentum long enough to make it to the point when we actually have a shot in hell at making a real difference -- i.e. a year two from now when Obama's had a chance to appoint a few Supreme Court justices.

blkandwhtcat November 17 2008, 01:53:08 UTC

Yes. I worry about people rushing to file appeals that challenge these amendments under the federal constitution, rather than just limiting it to the state constitution, and ending up having the current court ruling on the issue. It took almost 20 years for the SCOTUS to correct themselves and overturn their serious mistake in Bowers v. Hardwick, the Georgia case that affirmed a state's right to criminalize consensual, private sexual contact between same sex couples. We need to get some new blood on the court. I won't be at all sorry to see some of those conservatives retire.

msmoat November 16 2008, 14:27:55 UTC

Yeah. What you said. It will happen. An African-America president was just elected--by both the electoral and popular vote. Bigotry and hatred won't stand as a majority.

blkandwhtcat November 17 2008, 02:06:59 UTC

Yes, the election results, with the one exception of the anti-gay measures on ballots in four states, were pretty awesome. Voters said no to the stale, divisive, narrow-minded, anti-intellectual GOP platform, and said yes to progress. They said no to taking away or infringing upon a woman's right to choose, even if she happens to be a minor. The only losers in this election were gays. And we really lost. It's unfortunate that CA's method of amending its constitution can be done so easily, by majority vote, with no input or initial approval from the state legislature - a legislature that has twice passed statutes to legalize gay marriage, only to have them vetoed by the GOP governor. Many - most? - states have a much more complicated process for amending their constitutions. They require that the proposals pass in the legislature, usually with 2/3rds of the members voting yes, before it ever gets to the people for a popular vote. CA was an easy target. I think what shocked the No on Prop 8 campaign was how much money the pro-Prop 8 ( ... )

jean_c_pepper November 16 2008, 15:04:35 UTC

It's wonderful to have such an inspiring commander in chief. I don't even remember feeling this way during the Clinton years.

The passage of proposition 8 has made me feel bad- it was as you predicted, the african american vote pushed it over the edge.

blkandwhtcat November 17 2008, 02:46:14 UTC

I think Obama is one of the most inspirational speakers I've ever heard. He has mastered finding key phrases, and expressing them in a manner, and with a cadence, that captures both our attention and our imagination. I love the "Yes we Can" speech, and the way he brought it home in his acceptance speech on November 4th ( ... )