Proposition 8 Protests

Today, at 1:30 p.m. ET around the world, people protested against the passage of proposition 8, which bans same-sex marriage in California.

Luis and I spoke at a rally in Vancouver.

Here's the speech we gave. I read part, and then Luis read part.

On May 31, Luis and I becoming newlyweds.

It was the most joyous day of our lives.

We had a church service with piano music.

We had a cocktail hour and reception with 135 guests.

We had a first dance.

We cut the cake.

I danced with my mother and so did Luis.

And we had our last dance.

But our wedding day lacked one key ingredient: Legal recognition.

We merely had a “commitment ceremony” in New York State.

At the time, only Massachusetts and California legally recognized gay marriage.

We were hopeful, though, that the United States was making progress.

New York’s governor David Paterson ordered all state agencies to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions.

And he said he would sign a same-sex marriage law if presented to him.

But on Nov. 4, the United States took a giant leap backward for equality.

With the passage of Proposition 8, California banned same-sex marriage.

The same people who won that ban are mobilizing across the country to ban gay marriage in other states, including New York.

We must resist.

And we must fight to repeal the federal Defense of Marriage Act, which prohibits the federal government from recognizing same-sex marriages.

I’m not sure how that law defends marriage.

The title of the act is merely Orwellian double-speak.

But, effectively, the law made us a second-class couple.

Unlike heterosexual couples, who could sponsor their spouses for residency, I could not sponsor Luis, even if we had gotten married in another state or country.

The U.S. federal government wouldn’t recognize our relationship.

So unlike most newlyweds, we didn’t have the luxury of enjoying a honeymoon after our May ceremony.

Instead, we began packing boxes.

Less than a month after our commitment ceremony, we moved to Canada.

On America’s Independence Day, we experienced true independence, getting legally married in Victoria.

The move here was a major sacrifice.

I had to quit my job as a writer.

We sold our belongings at rock-bottom prices.

But there’s one thing we wouldn’t bargain: The right to marry each other.

I left a close-knit family.

Not long before I left, my mother was diagnosed with bone cancer.

And my father was diagnosed with a heart condition.

The decision to move was painfully difficult.

People shouldn’t have to be forced to decide between living close to relatives in the United States or living in a place where they can legally marry the person they love.

But the fight for that right continues.

And it’s intensifying in states across the country.

Because we moved to Canada, on July 4, we could proudly proclaim: “Just Married.”

But too many gay and lesbian Americans can only say: “Unjust. Not Married.”

We must change that.

We must move forward.

Here are more photos the event.