If passed, California’s Proposition 8 will define marriage as between a man and a woman, meaning that same sex couples will not be able to marry. This proposition has been the center of much debate since it was first proposed in 2008. There were supporters waving their American flags and holding signs with crosses on them with phrases like “protect marriage and families.” There were also those who were against the proposition waving their rainbow flags and holding signs like “no h8” or “equality for all.”

I will be straight up with my stance on this issue. I am completely 100 percent against Prop. 8. I believe that everyone deserves the right to love who they want to love and to marry who they want to marry. Allowing gays and lesbians to marry each other is in no way going to damage families or tarnish marriage.

Saying that you are trying to protect marriage makes you look like a four year old that doesn’t want to share. Marriage is only for you, and not for the other kids. This mentality is childish.

Or the ridiculous argument that you are trying to protect families. Please tell me what is damaging to a child that has two dads or two moms. Is your argument that you would rather have a child stay orphaned than get adopted by two loving parents? Or are you the four year old kid that doesn’t want to share being a family? If that is what you believe, then all you are is selfish.

There is also the religious argument. The argument that God doesn’t accept gays, that he doesn’t like them and that he thinks they are an “abomination.” Well, if that is what he thinks, then he should really stop creating gay people, because he is really just causing his own problem.

But wait, are you one of those people who believes that people choose to be gay? If someone “chooses” to be gay, there are many things to look forward to. You will most likely be bullied by your peers. You may be disowned from your family. You may be told that God hates you. Or the most obvious one being that you won’t be legally allowed to marry in 43 of the 50 US states. And, lets not forget the suicide rate. According to the Suicide Prevention Resource Center (SPRC), gay teenagers are one and a half to seven times more likely to commit suicide than straight teens. 

Enough of my ranting and instead a history lesson about Proposition 8. It was introduced in 2008, and was passed Nov. 5. In 2010, Prop. 8 was overturned in the case  Perry v. Schwarzenegger. U.S. District Chief Judge Vaughn R. Walker ruled that the proposition violated constitutional rights.

Walker’s ruling was appealed when he revealed that he was gay and in a long term relationship with his partner. Many supporters of Prop. 8 argued that Walker’s sexual orientation made him biased.

This accusation makes no sense to me at all. As a judge, he took an oath to serve the constitution, his rulings are what are best for the country, not himself. He made this ruling because he believed that Prop. 8 was unconstitutional, not because he would benefit personally.

This accusation is also very hypocritical. If a straight Christian judge had said that the proposition was constitutional we would not be having this conversation. People could make the argument that he wanted marriage to be between a man and a woman because of his religious beliefs, and what his sexual orientation was.

This appeal is simply an excuse for an attempt to make what he ruled false. It is just another attack by prejudice and hateful people against love.

 How would you feel if you were not able to marry the person you loved? No matter what your religious or political beliefs are, we are all people, and we all deserve the same rights.