LGBTQ+ lawmakers look to remove Prop 8 from CA constitution amid fears of marriage ban again

ByTim Johns KGO logo

Thursday, July 7, 2022

LGBTQ lawmakers look to remove Prop 8 from CA constitution

To stop Prop. 8 from becoming law again, members of California's LGBTQ caucus are pushing for a ballot measure to remove it from the CA constitution.

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Following the Supreme Court landmark case overturning Roe vs. Wade, LGBTQ+ advocates and lawmakers are worried they might be next.

It's all because of Proposition 8- the marriage for same-sex couples ban that was approved by voters back in 2008.

Struck down by a judge in 2010, it still remains in the state constitution. It can only be removed with voter approval.

Now, many are worried that if the Supreme Court overturns marriage equality, Prop. 8 could become the law of the land once again.

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"I think it is wise to look at this," said Margaret Russell.

Russell is a professor at Santa Clara University who has studied laws around sexual orientation.

She says the recent Roe vs. Wade ruling could put other previous court decisions at risk.

"The very fact that the Supreme Court of the United States is looking at this again means that that lower 2010 decision could be revisited," Russell said.

To combat the issue, members of the state's LGBTQ caucus are now pushing for a ballot measure to have voters officially remove Prop 8 from the state constitution.

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A move Carolyn Wysinger, the president of SF Pride, says she thinks is necessary to take.

"We have come so far with things and opinions about same-sex marriage, but so many people are just coming to that opinion that they are just now realizing how vulnerable it still is," Wysinger said.

And until the law is officially removed, Wysinger says she'll keep fighting.

Ensuring that hard-fought rights are here to stay.

"We have to still be vigilant in a blue state like California," she said.