SAN FRANCISCO FAMILY LAW BLOG

As the federal court battle against prop 8 heats up, the same-sex marriage advocates have been presenting a wealth of evidence in their favor. To show that those against gay marriage are in fact displaying animosity against homosexuals, footage of a has been presented where a leader in the Prop 8 movement, William Tam, tries to say that allowing gay marriage would lead to the legalization of fornication with children. Tam has also been recorded as having told his followers that if California legalizes same sex marriage, “one by one, other states would fall into Satan’s hands. Every child, when growing up, would fantasize marrying someone of the same sex. More children would become homosexuals.”

Yale law professor George Chauncey has testified that Tam’s statements are “consistent in tone with a much larger history of anti-gay rhetoric.”

San Francisco family attorneys say another strategy of those fighting for legalization of same-sex marriage has been to show that it does not actually present any threat to the institution of marriage. To help make this point, Harvard history professor Nancy Cott has testified that the U.S. has historically restricted marriage to other parties, such as inter-racial couples, and when these bans were lifted, the institution of marriage has become stronger, not weaker as proponents of the ban claim. Cott also argued that traditional gender roles involved with marriage are no longer applicable in our society and, thus, cannot be counted as an argument against gay marriage. She also argued that the divorce rate in Massachusetts has not risen in the five years since gay marriage has been legalized in the state.

Lastly, those arguing for same sex marriage legalization have provided evidence to show that a person’s sexuality is not a choice, but a genetic programing. To make this point, Ryan Kendall testified that his attempts to reform his sexuality through “reversal therapy” proved fruitless and almost drove him to commit suicide. He said at the end of his therapy, “I was just as gay as when I started.”

To read more on the matter, see the article on The Raw Story, The L.A. Times, and CBS News. Image via andy.birky [Flickr].