Re: The Gay Rights Movement
Stonewall Uprising is another really good documentary.
Did you know that after the allies liberated the concentration camps, many of those who wore the pink triangle were imprisoned for another 15 to 20 years because homosexuality was against the law in Germany-even though the law that perpetuated their imprisonment was a Nazi law? There were no laws outlawing homosexuality in Germany prior to the Nazis and there was actually a very thriving and healthy gay community in Germany until the Nazis came to power.
Chakotay answers a call for help on a planet and finds himself in the middle of a shoot-out between two groups of people while the Voyager crew discover an abandoned Borg ship.
Vorik passes on the Pon farr to B'Elanna.
I completely agree Kidd, I hope I didn't come across like I was being all "omg futility" with it. I just wanted to inject that little bit of reality back into the moment. This isn't the end of the fight yet!
On a side note, I think we need more movement taking on the IRS's tax codes especially with DOMA because right now Kor and I are trying to file our taxes for the first time as a married couple (thank you NY) and it's a whole heap of confusion about how exactly we should file.
While it's true that any Supreme Court decision won't create law instantly around the nation allowing for SSM, their decisions tend to have very significant impact on law making. Also, if a ban, even one voted on by the majority of a state's population is considered unconstitutional, bans entacted by legislatures will be futile.
The other thing to be hopeful about is the past decisions of the current court that uphold individual freedoms and privacy. No, it won't be the ultimate victory we seek on this. But, every little victory we can get helps us get that much closer to the goal.
While I'm encouraged by the 9th District Court's ruling there is one thing to keep in mind should the Supreme Court of the United States take on this case.
Assuming the court takes up the case which we will have to wait and see, Depending on how whatever decision is written; whether allowing the ban to stand or striking it down as unconstitutional, The writing of the decision will have national effects.
If the court tackles just the issue of this Prop 8 case, they will only rule on the constitutionality of VOTER approved bans. Those would be bans like Prop 8 that are in place because the majority of the voters in that state approved it. If this is the path that the Supreme Court would take that would have no bearing on Legislative bans that are passed by the legislature of the state without voter approval.
If the court chooses to take on the topic of whether ANY ban against Same Sex Marriage is constitutional that ruling would have a further reaching effect applying to all states that currently have banned Same Sex Marriage.
That's the tricky thing about the Supreme Court, Just because they rule on a case it doesn't always have the implications that many people think it will have. It all comes down to how their decision is written. For all we know they may decide that Legistative bans against SSM are unconstitutional, but those approved by the majority of voters are. We just need to wait and see how this plays out.
I do hope for the best though.