Why is this prop 8 issue important to me?

(Me, Joy, our friend Jenny)

I was surprised by my own interest and call to action on this issue. It may not seem like much, but for me to go protest in 30-degree weather is a BIG DEAL for the man from de islands! I think it was my first protest ever, which says something about my aptitude for civil unrest. But I felt compelled to act for a variety of reasons.

There was a time I would've been the one on the other side of the street holding a sign about 'Salvation' and 'Homosexuality is a Sin.' But in college I became good friends with people who were gay, and I learned that not only were they no different than me, some of them were actually BETTER PEOPLE than me! I was jealous of anyone who was so clear about who they were and could stand in that clarity.

I was also somewhat empathetic to the discrimination they suffered. Coming from a country where blacks are the majority, I did not feel the sting of racial discrimination until I lived in small town Virginia. The same state which until 1967 enforced the 'Racial Integity Act'-a law that made interracial (specifically whites and non-whites) marriages illegal...talk about a misnomer-where's the integrity in that? Not only am I in an interracial marriage, but Jen (not Jenny in pics!) and I lived and were married in Virgina. It was inconceivable to us that there was a time we would have been imprisoned for an act of love.

That insipid law was overturned by the Supreme Court in landmark civil rights case Loving v. Virginia (1967). In its decision the court wrote, "Marriage is one of the "basic civil rights of man," fundamental to our very existence and survival...." Yet today many of us would deny that right from others because we have accepted a certain theological interpretation as universal truth. I am in school to be an ordained minister, and I was appalled by the contributions from various religious movements supporting Proposition 8 (I always maintained that separation of church and state was a sham, but there wasn't even an attempt at subterfuge here!) If being called a Christian associates me with that kind of bigotry, I want to renounce the label. But instead, and even better, I will demonstrate with my life the true Christian compassion that Jesus modeled.

One of my favorite wedding memories occurred two nights before our wedding. Jen's best friend from college was delayed so we went to the Lincoln memorial to wait for her flight. We sat on the steps with a high-school civics class as their teacher played Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I have a dream" speech from a boom-box held high above his head (a la John Cusack in 'Say Anything'). We appreciated fully in that instant the immense sacrifices that were made so that we could sanctify or love through marriage.

I was proud have my daughter at my side, teaching her that love has no limits...not color, not gender, not anything. I know that there will be an end to bigotry. The walls continue to crumble. I know that our protesting knocked a few more bricks out of this one.

Couldn't have said it better...

Kudos to Keith Olberman for this:

Gains and Losses aka Life101 - Part.2

As the euphoria of Obama's victory and the country's awakening begins to settle, we witness another sign that indeed the road is steep.

We witness another sign that bigotry and ignorance still exist in a country that claims to be the greatest country in the world.

Proposition 8 was passed in California effectively restoring the ban on same-sex marriage.

C'mon America...SERIOUSLY?!

Don't you get that we're among the last of those still making this an issue?

Don't you get that we're still allowing religious zealots to manipulate the constitution?

Don't you get that if two men or two women get married your life WILL NOT CHANGE?

Why do some of us still cling to antiquated ideas stemming from misunderstanding?

Why do some of us resist change with every last fiber of our being?

Well as the election so vividly demonstrated, CHANGE IS COMING!

And it can't be stopped.

It might be stalled, postponed, resisted, refuted.

But it can't be stopped, and we're not going back.

During his Lyceum presentation Bishop John S. Spong (http://www.johnshelbyspong.com/) reminded us that once we have glimpsed the power of change we can never go back. We will not be taking the vote away from women; we will not be resegregating the south; we will not be enslaving another race of people. And there will coma a time, again, that will not withhold the rights of individuals because of their sexual orientation. It will become a non-issue.

Two steps forward and one step back is still forward motion.

I hardly dared to believe that I would see a black president in my lifetime.

I do believe we will see same-sex marriage legalized for good in my lifetime.

I believe love will conquer over hate.

I believe.

Welcome To My Yard - Part.2

No fear...the new yard signs haven't disappeared.

But I heard a pretty amazing story last night...

As in my case, an Obama sign was stolen and the culprits left the wire frame/stake behind.

This obviously evolved individual put a white card on the frame and simply wrote:

"I RESPECT YOUR CHOICE...PLEASE RESPECT MINE."

I admit I was instantly jealous when I heard this...why didn't I think of that?

My petty human response to my theft was anger, and now another petty response...jealousy.

But the jealousy quickly graduated to its light-side-of-the-force counterpart: Admiration.

Admiration for the ability make, I think, an even more powerful statement.

It is a statement that reflects the better part of us, that part to make a stand yet not give over to chaos when things aren't going our way.

For all the faults of the democratic and electoral process in this country, things to deteriorate to bedlam.

Granted, the McCain-Palin rallies have been getting a little crazy, yet no matter who becomes our next president, I'm sure there won't be violence.

(There may be some outta-this-world celebrating when...I mean if...Obama wins, but that's another story)

I'm holding firm that the better part of us will emerge triumphant.

We owe it to ourselves.

Welcome to my yard

Last week our Obama yard sign was stolen. I was honestly surprised, then pissed, then surprised I let myself get pissed by the actions of some moron who thought stealing a sign might somehow affect anyone's voting decision. So today I went to my local Obama hq and bought not one, but two new signs. There was a woman also buying new signs because her's were also stolen. The guy in charge said over 200 Obama signs were stolen from Lee's Summit. 200?! Couldn't even wrap my mind around that one! I get the country's divided (thankfully leaning towards Obama now) and some deluded soul will actually vote for McCain, but do we have to resort to petty theft?

I guess some folks out there choose to resort to petty theft to avert the sense of powerlessness they might feel in face of the approaching tidal wave of change. We all sense it. Obama represents our chance to catch up with the rest of the evolved world who have released the attachment to leaders looking the way they've always looked and thinking the way they've always thought. But admittedly many fear change. Even after we've experienced change and come out better for it. Well change can't be stopped. The question is how little resistance will we put up to make this an easy and graceful transition.

So go ahead...steal my yards signs...I've got more. And when they've all been stolen, change will still happen.

Welcome to my yard.