editorial in today’s LA Times. It places a much-needed focus on
the issue of childrearing and parenting in the DOMA debate:
What is the rational basis for laws
that deprive gay and lesbian couples of the right to wed? The
arguments that have emerged so far — that same-sex marriage is
bad for child-rearing and that it damages heterosexual unions —
fall apart under the slightest scrutiny. A judge in Massachusetts
recognized this in a case involving the federal Defense of Marriage
Act; now the judge in the lawsuit against California’s Proposition
8 should do the same.
In declaring the federal marriage
act unconstitutional last week, U.S. District Judge Joseph Tauro
noted that when Congress passed the law in 1996, supporters said it
would “encourage responsible procreation and child-rearing” and
protect traditional heterosexual marriage. The law recognizes only
heterosexual marriage for federal purposes. Supporters of
Proposition 8 used almost identical language during the 2008
campaign to ban recognition of same-sex marriage in the state.