A year after Prop 8: the state of gay marriage law

A year ago today, California voters approved Proposition 8, the constitutional amendment that bars same-sex marriages in the state. Maine voters yesterday approved a similar ban, leaving five states–Iowa, Massachusetts, Vermont, Connecticut and New Hampshire–in which gay couples may legally wed. This interactive map (scroll over to get more information on each state), designed and reported by Oakland North’s Shannon Service and Tasneem Raja, shows the current state-by-state array of marriage and civil union law around the United States.

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Hundreds protest Prop 8 in downtown Oakland

by MELANIE MASON Nov. 15–“Are you happy not to have to cross the bridge for justice today?” That was the question posed by Richard Wright, an Oakland-based blogger and activist, to an estimated 500 Oakland residents this morning, as they gathered in downtown’s Frank H. Ogawa Plaza to protest Proposition 8, the ballot measure to…

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Prop 8 challenged in court, questions abound

By HENRY JONES and SAMSON REINY Nov. 6–The passage of Proposition 8 has set off statewide legal confusion as same-sex marriage advocates filed petitions before the California Supreme Court yesterday, calling for the suspension of the gay marriage ban until the court decides if the amendment is unconstitutional. Californians voted on Tuesday by a 52…

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Get out vote effort starts before dawn

By MELANIE MASON Nov. 4 – It is 6 am, and most of the storefronts on Broadway are dark and shuttered.  The sun has yet to rise.  But the lights are on at the Oakland Democratic Party headquarters, and the people streaming in are awake and attentive.  This is no day for early morning grogginess. …

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Black church leaders urge no vote on Prop 8

By KRISTINE WONG Oct. 21 – On the steps of Oakland City Hall this morning, African-American ministers and politicians declared their strong opposition to Proposition 8, the state ballot initiative that would make same-sex marriage illegal in California. Citing civil rights as well as religious, legal, and personal reasons, they challenged the assumption that the…

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Oakland Democrats focus on local elections

By BAGASSI KOURA Sept. 22 — As the California Democratic Party works on playing a larger role in the battleground states for the presidential election, Bay Area Democrats opened Sunday a new Oakland campaign office that will focus on local races. “We want the Obama supporters to get involved for the different propositions that we support,…

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