California will try to secure the right to same-sex marriage

California, a progressive legislator in the US and a state whose current governor once broke the news about same-sex marriage licenses in San Francisco before it was legal, will try to enshrine marriage equality in the state constitution.

The effort comes 15 years after a voter-approved initiative called Proposition 8 that would bar the state from recognizing same-sex marriages. In 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed same-sex marriage in California. However, a constitutional amendment is still pending, troubling advocates who believe the Supreme Court could revisit a 2015 case to legalize same-sex marriage across the country.

“It’s an absolute poison, it’s so destructive and humiliating that it’s in our constitution,” said Democrat Scott Wiener, a state senator representing San Francisco.

He and Democratic Assemblyman Evan Lowe of Silicon Valley plan to introduce legislation Tuesday to repeal Proposition 8. The measure would need to be approved by a two-thirds vote in the Legislative Assembly, after which voters would have to decide in a referendum. .

Days before Proposition 8 was approved, Lowe joined opponents of the measure outside of his college alma mater De Anza in Cupertino, California to urge voters to reject the initiative. When it passed, it became personal for Lowe, who is gay.

“Why do Californians hate me?” He said. “Why do they think my rights should be abolished?”

California could follow in the footsteps of Nevada, which in 2020 became the first state to amend its constitution to guarantee the right to same-sex marriage. The case took on new urgency last year when the US Supreme Court overturned the right to abortion established by Roe v. Wade. At the time, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas questioned other important cases and urged the court to review them. His list included Obergefell v. Hodges, which forced states to allow and recognize same-sex marriages.

“In future cases, we must review all significant due process precedents of this Court, including the cases of Griswold, Lawrence and Obergefell,” Thomas wrote, referring to two other landmark cases involving access to birth control and the decision to strike down anti-same-sex laws. sexual relations. activity.

In December, President Joe Biden signed into law the Respect for Marriage Act, which requires states to recognize same-sex marriage, but does not require states to allow it if Obergefell is ousted.

Viner and Lowe, two California lawmakers, hope to repeat the process that saw state voters in November approve a constitutional amendment guaranteeing abortion rights.

Proposition 8 has yet to be repealed, Viner said, as the need for it has diminished since the state was allowed to resume issuing marriage licenses for same-sex couples and same-sex marriage was legalized across the country.

“It turned into a fire alarm after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade,” he said.

The path to marital equality in the Golden State has been rocky. In 2000, voters approved a law banning the recognition of same-sex marriages, but a court overturned the measure. Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat who became mayor of San Francisco in 2004, arranged marriages with same-sex couples in the city, which was against the law and the views then held by many in his party. In 2005, the California Legislature was ahead of every other state when it passed a bill to legalize same-sex marriage. But then – the governor. This was vetoed by Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Support for marriage equality expanded rapidly after the Obergefell decision. While Mormon groups helped fund the Proposition 8 campaign in California, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints came out in support of the Respect for Marriage Act.

Tony Hoang, chief executive of Equality California, is optimistic that the group can help build a larger coalition for the proposed amendment.

“I know it will be a bipartisan campaign,” he said.

Associated Press journalist Terry Chea of ​​Fremont, California contributed to this report.