Mudd: California Gay Marriage Decision Gives Hope
The following is a comment from a a good friend of mine here in Sioux Falls in response to yesterday’s California Supreme Court decision according similar treatment to gay couples and married couples. Karen Mudd is also the chair of Equality South Dakota, a new GLBT lobbying and education group.
Karen is like a sister to me. She is a hard working, smart, good humored, and responsible person. I hope you think about what she says below.
Today’s Supreme Court decision in California gives a bit of hope to people like me. It makes me think that someday my life partner and I (two women) will enjoy the same rights and responsibilities enjoyed by married couples. I suspect that day won’t be too soon here in South Dakota — but I am certain that the day is coming.
My partner and I have been together for nearly a decade. We are a family unit in every respect. Our lives are
firmly intertwined and fortified by love and respect, intimacy, trust and commitment. We are one social and economic unit, we work and pay our taxes, we’re good neighbors, and we donate our time and money to
help make the world a better place. Why is it that we can’t be married in the eyes of the state? What would be lost by it?As it stands, we have spent a great deal of time and money putting together legal documents that replicate the protections included in marriage — but it still won’t get us there. Thankfully, we have the resources to
prepare wills and powers of attorney and other necessary legal documents but the majority of LGBT people don’t. It’s just not fair to tell them and us that our lives and our love is not equal.So, tonight I’m toasting to California (and Massachusetts) for leading the way. Thanks to them our fight in South Dakota is energized with hope!
Todd Epp
in Civil Liberties/Rights, GLBT issues
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