Protesters demand right to marry same-sex partners

As part of a national campaign in honor of Freedom to Marry Week, a group in favor of repealing Proposition 8 and securing equal rights for same-sex couples gathered at the Contra Costa County Clerk Recorder’s Building on Thursday afternoon.

County Board of Supervisors member John Gioia stood front and center as a group of 30 people, equipped with colorful picket signs, convened at the front entrance to answer media questions and stand together in peaceful demonstration.

“I wanted to be here today to support civil disobedience in the face of injustice,” Gioia said as he addressed the crowd. “I’m proud that the majority of voters in Contra Costa voters under 30 overwhelmingly voted against Prop. 8, and we saw that voters with higher levels of education also voted no to Prop. 8, so the smart ones know what’s right.”

55.4 percent of Contra Costa County voters said No to Prop. 8, while 44 percent voted in favor of the ban on same-sex marriages.

A half hour later, two local same-sex couples entered the county clerk’s office on Escobar and Alhambra Streets to request a marriage license, followed by the entire assembly of demonstrators, reporters and casual onlookers.

“I’m not gay, but if I were, I’d want equal rights,” read one demonstrator’s protest sign.

Knowing full well that they would be turned away under current state law, the couples and supporters said the demonstration was an exercise designed to “render visible the discrimination that is enforced every day,” according to spokesperson Leslie Steward, who is the Operations Manager for the Rainbow Community Center of Contra Costa County.

A clerk behind the glass at the marriage license counter, after listening to the couples’ requests, stated a routine speech and passed some papers across the counter — and the demonstration was over.

One sheet was a printout from a www.leginfo.ca.gov, enumerating Section 300-310 of the State’s Family Code. Section 300 (a) reads, “Marriage is a personal relation arising out of a civil contract between a man and a woman, to which the consent of the parties capable of making that contract is necessary.” The words ‘man’ and ‘woman’ were in boldface.

The second form handed to the couples was a Declaration of Domestic Partnership, and the third was a blank Application for Public Marriage License.

At the protest, Rev. David Takahashi Morris of the Mt. Diablo Unitarian Universalist Church said, “I think all people who want to be married should be, it’s a religious expectation for us.”

Stewart said that Thursday’s protesters are acting on behalf of the national organizations Marriage Equality USA and Join The Impact. Both organize events around the country, and Nancy Jasa, who spearheads the Mt. Diablo Unitarian Universalist Church’s Equality Task Force, said their next event is on Monday, February 16.

According to Marriage Equality USA’s Web site, “Love and Marriage is a statewide community rally on President’s Day — Monday, February 16th from noon to 3 p.m. — where people from all over the state will join us on the steps of the Capitol to show our solidarity for the rights of 18,000 same-sex couples who were married and look forward to the day when those rights are available again, this time for everyone. Attendees are encouraged to come wearing white, leave seeing red. Celebrities, speakers, entertainment and thousands of like-minded people will attend.”

The protestors also said they plan to congregate in San Francisco on the evening of March 4 to march from the Castro to the steps of the California Supreme Court, as on March 5, the California Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in favor of repealing Prop. 8.

On the FAQ page of the County’s Web site, after the question, ‘How do I obtain a marriage license?’ it states, “Both parties must appear together before the Clerk. An application form will be provided for you to complete. Blood tests are no longer required. Applicants must be unmarried and at least 18 years of age. Both must have a government issued valid picture ID that includes full legal name and date of birth. If either party has been granted dissolution within the last 12 months, a filed copy of the final judgment will be required. The license is issued at the time of appearance and is valid for 90 days.”

Nowhere does it specify the need for opposite sexes.

“We may today have lost a battle but we’re going to win the war. Same-sex equality is about civil rights and the clerk’s office should only be in the business of issuing marriage licenses,” said Supervisor Gioia as the demonstrators dispersed.