What are civil rights anyway?

There is a nasty rumor swirling around Proposition 8 in California. The reason it was successful was due in large part to African American so-called Christians. Another reason is the LDS Church and other conservative Christian factions.

As a a woman of colour who is formerly LDS, I find this report to be disturbing on so many levels. Blacks were subjugated to slavery and horrors of Jim Crow laws and mysegyny and Mormons were tarred, feathered, raped, murdered, chased from state to state and finally came to Utah after an extermination order was issued against the entire religion in the 1800's by Governor Boggs - the governor of Missouri. Can you imagine such a thing in our lifetime? What is even more amazing is that the LDS Church is visiting hate and oppression on another group - have they forgotten their history?

I spoke recently with someone who told me of a story that happened at one of California's well-known newspapers. It seems that an employee's picture was defaced when another employee wrote the word: "Lesbo" on her picture. This employee was shell-shocked - her usually upbeat and bubbly personality stunted by such a vicious act. My friend went to HR to report the incident and then went again to make out an official complaint.

I repeat my thought from earlier in the week - "when one person is marginalized, we are all marginalized"- there are not enough gays in the country to "threaten" traditional marriage - and on another note - if traditional marriage is so good, why is the divorce rate so high?

41 years ago, my previous marriage to my Caucasian husband would have been illegal - thanks to Loving vs. Virginia, the supreme court decision that outlawed such nonsense, we were able to marry, have 4 amazing children and enjoy a good life for 15 years. Allowing gays to marry would not make my marriage any less valid as a result.

I wish that people would stay out of the private affairs of others - if we all minded our business like watches, like my mum says - life would be much easier.