Civil Rights vs. the Civilian Right (or, Voters: “Man, We Just Elected the Black Guy! What Else Do You Want From Us?”)

Amidst the ebullience of last Tuesday’s landmark presidential election, in which our nation elected its first African-American Commander-in-Chief, an unfortunate irony emerged in California, Arizona and Florida as voters in those states passed measures banning gay marriage. Astoundingly, many who patted themselves on the back for defying society’s racial barriers by sending a black man to the Oval Office felt that it was perfectly within reason to deny their fellow citizens the right to have a legally recognized relationship.

California’s Proposition 8, the most high-profile of the ballot measures, overturned the State Supreme Court ruling from earlier this year that permitted homosexual couples to wed. When November 5 rolled around, an estimated 17,000 couples had the status of their marriages suddenly thrown into gray uncertainty about how (and if) they would be able to retain their briefly enjoyed spousal rights.

Here in KC, area LGBT organizers and supporters are planning local participation in the Nationwide Stop the H8 Rally this Saturday, which will take place at 12:30pm at the J.C. Nichols Fountain on the Plaza. The Lesbian and Gay Community Center of Kansas City is the main sponsor — contact them for volunteer information.

In the week since the election, equal-rights supporters throughout California have staged protests condemning Prop 8. Gov. Schwarzenegger (no matter how much time passes, we cannot get used to saying that phrase), who was no fan of the proposal’s passage, predicted legal challenges against the measure:

It is unfortunate, but it is not the end because I think this will go back into the courts,” Mr. Schwarzenegger said. “It’s the same as in the 1948 case when blacks and whites were not allowed to marry. This falls into the same category.”

In traditional conservative fashion, same-sex marriage opponents framed the pro-Prop 8 argument as “protecting traditional marriage,” as if heterosexual folks have done such a boffo job of giving the institution a good name. This is one of those social issues the wrongheaded Right loves to talk about, because it can stir up their followers into a froth of fear, and rallies them to the cause.

This leads us into another line of discussion — the wedging of America, performed more often than not by the modern conservative movement. True conservatism, the reasonable balance of the federal-state-individual dynamic, has been thrust into the shadows by louder, loonier leaders in the right wing of the Republican party and radio/cable TV show hosts with anger (and controlled substance) issues. New York Times columnist David Brooks, a moderate conservative who we actually like quite a bit, had some interesting musings yesterday about conservatism’s future that highlight the struggle for the GOP soul in the new political climate.

When ballot petitions about same-sex marriage, abortion, stem-cell research, etc. are sponsored by conservative groups, it exposes their greatest hypocrisy: the movement that derides government turns around and advocates for state or federal intervention in the most private, personal aspects of an individual’s life. They express disgust when so-called activist judges “legislate from the bench,” but cheer when special interest groups abuse the petition process and legislate through campaigns laced with outright falsehoods and fear tactics. God forbid we put reasonable restrictions on assault weapon purchases…but hot damn and hellfire if we’ll accept two adults entering into a relationship together!

Conservatives lament the intrusion of the government into our lives, yet they are highly skilled at making government, by way of petition initiatives and ballot measures, an insidious mechanism for trampling our freedoms. The past eight years of Bush policies is a testament to that. What a stunning, hurtful revelation it was for homosexual Americans to discover that it’s not the government that is intent on limiting their rights, but rather their fellow citizens.

Right-wingers claim to be worried about the encroachment of socialism, but what appears to be a more real and unnerving threat is the oppression that everyday citizens seem to be okay with. Look no further than the Arkansas Unmarried Couple Adoption Ban voters in that state passed last week — it was aimed at preventing gay and lesbian couples from adopting children or becoming foster parents, although the actual statute makes it illegal for “any individual cohabiting outside of a valid marriage to adopt or provide foster care to minors.” Meaning: straight folks are out of luck, too. So basically…57% of voters there feel that even a married couple in an abusive, unhealthy relationship would be better-suited to providing a safe environment for children than a couple who are (gasp!) unmarried or (double gasp!) gay. Leave it to Arkansas to once again culturally de-evolve.

Sigh. Well, I believe the words of a great American cultural philosopher will serve as an appropriate end to this commentary — note the prescient warnings about the eroding of civil liberties and invasive policies in the text:

They will tell you, you can’t sleep alone in a strange place
Then they’ll tell you, you can’t sleep with somebody else
Ah, but sooner or later you sleep in your own space
Either way it’s okay, you wake up with yourself

I don’t need you to worry for me cause I’m alright
I don’t want you to tell me it’s time to come home
I don’t care what you say anymore, this is my life
Go ahead with your own life, and leave me alone

I never said you had to offer me a second chance
I never said I was a victim of circumstance
I still belong, don’t get me wrong
And you can speak your mind
But not on my time

I don’t care what you say anymore, this is my life
Go ahead with your own life, and leave me alone

- Billy Joel, “My Life”

What, you were expecting Thomas Paine?