Six Steps To Same Sex Marriage

As I’ve written over the past few days, there are six things that should happen to advance the cause of same-sex marriage. I’ve hyperlinked to each so you can read my rationale for each in greater detail.

1. Litigation against Prop. 8 needs to come to an end.
2. More gay people need to come out of the closet.
3. Make domestic partnerships legally identical to marriage.
4. Wait for demographic creep to create a more favorable electorate.
5. Repeal the Federal Defense of Marriage Act.
6. Create a secular-friendly social environment.

I suppose that to some, adopting and advocating this six-point platform makes me something of a left-wing culture warrior. Certainly much of what I’m talking about here is anathema to the religious right, which is all that some need to brand me an enemy. That’s not the label I seek or one that I welcome. I consider myself a moderate on most things. But if being called a liberal culture warrior is the price I have to pay for standing up for equality and against bigotry, then I’ll have to accept that.

And it’s going to be a long struggle. The possibilities of using the courts and direct democracy to advance this cause have been, at least for now, exhausted. We need more political and social development before this goal can be reached. I regret that, and I wish it could happen now. But I can draw no other conclusion on the basis of the evidence before me. It’s a long struggle, but anyone who bets that over the long haul, rights in this great nation of ours will contract rather than expand is bound to lose.

Now, I’ve written about this subject almost exclusively for several days. And that’s enough. I’ve written all my bitter out, and I’m going to focus on other things for a while.