I just called the Governator's office to support AB 849, the gender-neutral marriage legislation. Since I'm notoriously phone-phobic, this is a major accomplishment for me. Fortunately, you don't actually have to talk to actual people or even be articulate about your opinion; it's just an automated machine. Here's what you do:
1. Call the Governator:916-445-2841 (his number is listed at http://www.governor.ca.gov)
2. Push: 2 (voice your opinion on legislation)
3. Push: 1 (gender-neutral marriage bill - Senate Bill 849)
4. Push: 1 to support marriage equality
(via towleroad and Prophecyboy)
It's quick and easy, and there's some hope that it will have an effect, since he hasn't actually vetoed the bill yet. The Governator's supposedly scheduled a meeting with gay marriage activists, and the more support they have to show him the better the chances.
Now, I'm not unambivalent about gay marriage. In general, I think state-sanctioned marriage of any sort is a pretty bad idea. In many ways I'm a 1970s lesbian feminist, especially in the belief that all marriage is an exploitative property contract and a holdover from a time when women were bartered between men in exchange for money. Lisa Duggan is wonderful and articulate on how the fight for marriage is essentially conservative and works against meaninful social change in that it reinforces dependence on the family and household, freeing the state to make more cutbacks in things like welfare, health care, and child support. But nonetheless, just because I don't believe the state should be promoting marriage at all, that doesn't mean I believe that perpetuating marriage as a heterosexual institution furthers the cause of gender liberation. And Arnie's excuses for vetoing the bill are downright vile and discriminatory. So voice your opinion, in the form of pushing a few buttons on your phone. Even if it is a qualified support, I encourage everyone to do their part in undermining marriage through gender neutral language.
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1 comments:
In contrast, I've found marriage to be pro-equity. It is the oldest institution of ingegration on the planet. Marriage can wind up with matriarchal or patriarchal societies, but especially in the case of Woman's sufferage its required integration gave women the political leverage to cause men to do something that happens very rarely in history -- they voted to share their power peacefully with others. A move I entirely endorse, and think that in a world where men had the power and women were used as commerce (much like in Massachusettes surrogacy now) that it would never have come about.
In any case, AB 849 is unconstitutional. I hope people all call to support the constitution no matter where they stand in this culture war.
But honestly, I think marriage is one of the most equitable beautiful institutions you can find in human culture.
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