APIs Hail Marriage Decision
By GWEN MURANAKA
RAFU ENGLISH EDITOR IN CHIEF
Saturday, May 17, 2008

Two Asian American justices split their decisions on gay marriage ruling.

Photo by MARIO G. REYES/Rafu Shimpo
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa address the media on the California Supreme Court’s ruling to overturn a voter-approved ban on gay marriage at the Gay and Lesbian center in Hollywood, Thursday.

Associated Press
John Lewis, right, waves as he smiles with his partner,
Stuart Gaffney, left, outside of the State Supreme Court
building in San Francisco, Thursday after the court ruled
in favor of the right for same sex couples to wed. They
were one of the main plaintiffs in the case.

Asian Pacific American gay rights advocates hailed the California Supreme Court ruling on Thursday that would allow same-sex couples to wed. In a 4-3 ruling, the justices struck down a ban on same-sex marriages, stating that do­mestic partnerships were not a good enough substitute for marriages.

“We are thrilled by today’s landmark victory and we want to thank the many Asian American organizations for their support in filing the amicus brief in support of the case to guarantee fairly and equality for all Californians,” said Karin Wang, API Equality-LA steering committee member and vice-president of programs at the Asian Pacific American Legal Center.

The two Asian Americans on the court split their decisions. Justice Ming Chin, appointed by Gov. Pete Wilson in 1996, was among the three dissenters on the ruling; while Joyce
Kennard, a Gov. George Deukmejian appointee who is part Indonesian, joined in the majority. In a dissenting opinion, Justice Marvin Baxter agreed with many arguments of the majority but said the court overstepped its authority. Changes to marriage laws should be decided by the voters, Baxter wrote.

In San Francisco, Stuart Gaffney, who is Asian American, and his partner John Lewis were among the 19 plaintiffs on the case.

“Sixty years ago, the California Supreme Court overturned the ban on interracial marriage that allowed my parents, who were an interracial couple, to be married,” said Gaffney. “Today, the California Supreme Court has once again stood up for equality and proven that the law must treat all Californians fairly. After waiting over 20 years, I will finally be allowed to marry my partner, John Lewis.”

According to UCLA’s Williams Institute, Asian Americans form a highly visible portion of California’s population of same-sex couples and their children.

California ranks first as the state with the largest number of Asian American lesbian and gay couples (although the numbers are difficult to ascertain, a low estimate shows at least 13,000 couples in total). More than 5,600 children under 18 (related and unrelated) are raised by same-sex couples with at least one Asian American partner.

At the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center’s Village, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa vowed that he would hold marriage ceremonies when the ruling goes into effect, which legal experts say will probably be in a month.

“Since 1994, when I was first elected to the state Assembly, I’ve stood for the idea that we —government—should not be able to prevent two people from marrying, loving one another, engaging in a lifetime partnership,” Villaraigosa said. “I’m very proud that today the California Supreme Court has upheld this law as constitutional.”

Lorri L. Jean, chief executive officer of the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center, added her praise for the court’s decision.

“The California Supreme Court had the integrity and the courage to do its job and say that all Californians are entitled to equal protection of the law,” Jean said.

“This is not an activist court. This is a moderate court. Republican governors appointed all but one of them. And today that moderate court did exactly what it is supposed to do—it applied the law fairly.”

Paul Park and his partner Dean Larkin of Los Angeles were among the couples that stood behind the podium as local leaders addressed the media. API Equal­ity-LA, a coalition of individuals and Asian American groups, was among the organizations represented at the event.

“The court recognized that marriage is a civil right, it’s about our ability to choose who we love,” said Park. “It’s a great recognition of the rights we’ve been looking for. As an Asian American it felt like as some of my friends say, it feels like I’m coming out as Asian again.”

Park and Dean Larkin have been together for 10 years. The couple said they plan to wed as soon as the ruling takes effect.

“We want to get married as quickly as we can, the thing we have to work out is whether it will be a dual wedding or not, with our daughter and her partner,” said Park.

Wang said that API Equality-LA will be working within the API community in anticipation of a challenge to same sex marriage on the November ballot.

“It’s not over yet. On a parallel track there are groups who oppose same sex marriage. We’re pretty sure we’ll see a ballot initiative in November,” said Wang. “We have this amazing victory, but we have to fight to protect it.”

Opponents to the ruling include the Campaign for Children and Families, California Catholic Conference and Supervisor Mike Antonovich.

Randy Thomasson, president of Cam­paign for Children and Families, said, “Children without a father or without a mother on average fair worse than chil­dren with a married father and mother, all under the same roof. If the institution of marriage is redefined and therefore destroyed in the law, the well-being of children is threatened, both emotionally, socially, even physically.”
—Additional reporting by City News Service