On the east-iest of the East Coast, we have Connecticut, ranked 48th in the US in size at just 5,543 square miles. And you can drive from the border of New York to Rhode Island, in just over an hour---depending upon Hartford traffic.On the west-iest of the West Coast, we have California, ranked 3rd in the US in size at 163,696 square miles. In size, Connecticut is third from the bottom [ahead of Rhode Island and Delaware] and California is third from the top [behind Alaska and Texas]. And that is where the parallel ends.
For in Connecticut, not a bastion of liberalism, has taken a step in the right direction of marriage equality by beginning to marry gay and lesbian couples. Last month, the Connecticut Supreme Court “had ruled, 4 to 3, that the state’s civil unions violated the constitutional guarantees of equal protection under the law…” ---setting the stage for hundreds of gay couples to be hitched.
But marriage equality is now prohibited in California. So, this issue will most assuredly makes its way to the United States Supreme Court with the states in disagreement over this matter. Massachusetts and Connecticut are now the only states allowing same-sex marriage. New Jersey, Vermont and New Hampshire have civil unions, and California has domestic partnerships.
So, Connecticut is little in size, but large in civil rights.
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2 comments:
Letting people actually vote on Prop 8 was a waste of time... especially given the fact that it is almost guaranteed to be overturned in court.
They should have learned from Europe... neither the EU Constitution (failed in France and The Netherlands) nor the Lisbon Treaty (failed in Ireland) passed because they were put to referendums. Other countries passed both pieces because the respective governments did not give the people a voice... or a choice on the matter.
Unlike Europe however we luckily have the courts to overturn the people's will. Msybe Europe could learn from us in this case eh?
The only court that can overturn the result of Prop 8---since it was for a constitutional amendment---is the US Supreme Court. Marriage equality will be heard eventually by the Supremes.
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