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(Toronto, Ontario) California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's decision to veto equal marriage legislation has drawn a sharp rebuke from Canada's largest LGBT rights organization.
Following passage of the same-sex marriage bill in the California legislature this week (story) the governor issued a statement saying he would veto the measure.
Schwarzenegger said that the bill is in conflict with Proposition 22 a ballot initiative passed in 2000 to prevent California from recognizing same-sex marriages performed elsewhere and the issue should be decided by the courts or the people through another referendum.
North of the border in Canada, where same-sex marriage is legal, LGBT rights group Egale called the veto threat an attack on gay families.
"Governor Schwarzenegger is being a 'girlie-man', to use his own words, by not standing up for the equality of all Californians," said Gilles Marchildon, Egale's Executive Director.
"He says that it's not up to political leaders to take a stand. Yet a majority of the people's representatives voted for equality."
In July 2004, Schwarzenegger ignited a controversy when he called Democrats "girly-men" for not passing the State's budget more quickly. Governor Schwarzenegger said his opponents "cannot have the guts to come out there in front of you and say, 'I don't want to represent you.' ... I call them girlie-men."
Said Marchildon in a statement from Egale: "Who is the "girlie-man" now? Schwarzenegger lacks the guts to admit that he doesn't champion the equality of Californians despite the endorsement of people's elected representatives?"
Egale, along with Canadians for Equal Marriage, was a key organization involved in the recent two-year campaign to lobby Canada's federal Parliament to adopt equal-marriage legislation. When the legislation became law on this past July 20, Canada became the fourth country in the world to legalize equal marriage of same-sex couples, after The Netherlands, Belgium and Spain.
"There is still an opportunity for Governor Schwarzenegger to show compassion and leadership," says Marchildon. "He should at least meet with the people and families most affected by his decision. Hopefully, he will come out on the right side of history."
California's LGBT civil rights groups and the state's Democrats are not ready to throw in the towel. Earlier on Friday 365Gay.com reported that backers of the legislation may stall on sending it to the governor to give more time for gays to lobby Schwarzenegger.
The issue of same-sex marriage is slowly heading toward the California Supreme Court. In March a San San Francisco judge ruled that state laws preventing gay marriage are illegal. The case is currently under appeal.
Meanwhile, a conservative group called the "Voters' Right to Protect Marriage Initiative" has begun collecting signatures to have a proposed amendment to the California Constitution banning same-sex marriage placed on the 2006 ballot. If approved by voters it would not only bar gays and lesbians from marrying but also void the state's landmark domestic partner law.
©365Gay.com 2005
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