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Gay Marriage: An Electoral Liability

California's vote against same-sex marriage was one negative consequence of Obama's victory.
An Advocate.com exclusive posted November 5, 2008
Gay Marriage: An Electoral Liability

Amid the euphoria around Obama's tremendous victory, gay men and women across America will find it difficult to contain their disappointment, anger, and a painful sense of betrayal. The success of Proposition 8, a ballot initiative that amends California's state constitution to define marriage as only between a man and a woman, shows that despite all the gains we still rank low when it comes to the struggle for equality.

Six months after the California supreme court struck down the state's ban on same-sex marriage, unleashing a wave of gay weddings, it's like waking up to find that we're still the misunderstood problem child that other kids shun in the playground. There will be a lot of soul-searching in the weeks to come, but the fact is that gay Americans remain an electoral liability for Democrats whose support remains largely tepid, often crystallizing only after they've left office.

That's why it was safe for Bill Clinton to lend his support to the "no" campaign in the last few weeks, despite his advice to John Kerry in 2004 to back local bans on gay marriage and the federal Defense of Marriage Act that he signed into law in 1996. And it explains why Obama played such an awkward dance of being for equality, but against gay marriage. On MTV last weekend he said Prop. 8 was "unnecessary" (gee, thanks!) while reiterating his opposition to marriage equality, a stance that played into the hands of Prop. 8 campaigners, who used his words in their TV ads and campaign literature. We kvetched about that, but who can blame them? That's politics. 

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Hicklin is the editorial director of Regent Media.
Keywords:  2008 Election  California marriage  Prop 8 
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Reader Comments

These comments are reproduced as written by visitors to this Web site. They have not been edited for content, grammar, or spelling. The viewpoints appearing here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily reflect the opinion or views of advocate.com, The Advocate, or its affiliates.

  • Name: Josh
    Date posted: 2008-11-11 11:49 PM
    Hometown: Los Angeles

    Comment:

    It should be noted, that rights belong to individuals, not to groups; and that no definition infringes upon anyone's rights. For example: Prop 8 did not prohibit gay men from entering into the civil institution with a woman known as marriage, nor did it infringe upon his 'lifestyle.' There is a difference between men and women, and therefore a difference between a gay couple, a lesbian couple, and a heterosexual couple; to call all three of these the same thing is to say that men are the same as women (not merely equal to). In truth, 'gay marriage' cannot be opposed any more than any other true oxymoron.


  • Name: lionel
    Date posted: 2008-11-06 9:24 PM
    Hometown: los angeles

    Comment:

    Don, as a Catholic Black Dem in Los Angeles, I hope we can bring the blessings of a Prop 8 to your state soon. And CT while we're at it.


  • Name: scott
    Date posted: 2008-11-06 4:25 PM
    Hometown: oweg, ny

    Comment:

    Well.... I didn't support him. I watched a couple of interviews LIVE where both Joe Biden ( a man I've always admired) and Barak Obama (another man I admired) said they are against gay marriage about two weeks before the election. That did it for me. Right there and then I changed my vote to Ralph Nader. He's openly supportive of gay marriage. He doesn't pander. It' absolutely INFURIATING that the Democratic candidates can openly tell me on live tv that they do NOT support my right to marry and still expect me to give them my vote and support. SCREW THEM!!!


  • Name: Anton
    Date posted: 2008-11-06 3:28 PM
    Hometown: Asheville

    Comment:

    Perhaps the article's tagline could be stated more fairly. The passing of Prop 8 was not the result of an Obama victory. This is dangerously oversimplifying the matter. It was the result of ignorance and bigotry promoted by a religious institution through a massive ad campaign whose strategy was fear. If I recall correctly, we were winning this thing in the polls until the Mormon Church poured funds into Yes on 8. Polls are usually conducted with either registered voters or likely voters. Thus if the embers of fear and intolerance hadn't been stoked by the ads, people might've looked past their prejudices and defeated this hateful amendment.


  • Name: David
    Date posted: 2008-11-06 2:51 PM
    Hometown: Austin, TX

    Comment:

    To Kill T.: Your comments are gross, vile, and absolutely full of hate. When you are filled with such vitriol for one marginalized community, how do you expect anyone else to recognize your humanity as a queer person. Not only are you a bigot, but you hide behind false names; you are nothing but a coward and a filthy example of a human being. With people like you out there, may God have mercy on all of us!


  • Name: David
    Date posted: 2008-11-06 2:47 PM
    Hometown: Austin, TX

    Comment:

    As a queer latino activist myself, I am sick and tired of WHITE gay men and lesbians always wanting to bemoan our losses and lay full (or a majority) of the blame on so-called socially conservative Black and Brown communities. Need I remind you that it was conservative WHITE churches that put this proposition on the ballot and then decided to court religious communities of color. Meanwhile, the WHITE gay community did near to NOTHING in communities of color (like they usually do). Your racism is equally to blame because how can both sides (white gays and straight folks of color) work together when they are both standing on each other's neck. Then queer folks of color are left in the middle marginalized and scorned on both sides looking at both houses, both communities burn to the ground in their hatred for one another. Yes, it was hatred, intolerance, and ignorance that helped pass Prop 8, but it was both HOMOPHOBIA and RACISM that helped pass the measure and prevented coalition work.


  • Name: Lorelei
    Date posted: 2008-11-06 12:44 PM
    Hometown: Providence

    Comment:

    I assume that this story is about the importance of Hickland, because, gee... the portrait-studio photo of his face is so much BIGGER than the text of the STORY. Narcissism, anyone?


  • Name: Don Gorton
    Date posted: 2008-11-06 9:23 AM
    Hometown: Boston

    Comment:

    The exit poll results paint a jarring picture. While we cannot erase the fact that the African-American vote went 70% in favor of discrimination, we must be careful to avoid a racist backlash in our community. The problem is religiously-based homophobia, most fierce among the Mormons. We are entitled to our anger, but we must move beyond it to erase Proposition 8 from the California consitution. Ultimately, our love is more potent than their hate.


  • Name: Paul
    Date posted: 2008-11-05 7:35 PM
    Hometown: Tampa

    Comment:

    Thank you, Aaron, for a well stated article that touches on all the things I'm thinking and feeling. It would be wonderful, now that he's safely President-elect, if Obama would issue a statement at least recognizing what a traumatic and disappointing evening last night was for a community that gave him overwhelming support in the election.


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