THEY HATE PROP 8
About 160 members and friends of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer/
Questioning community gathered outside the Illinois Supreme Court in
Springfield over the weekend to protest what they call “hateful ballot initiatives” approved by voters in Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, and, most notably,
California, on Nov. 4.
Organizers Bret Tate and Renee Rathjen kicked off the event by leading the crowd in chants of Love is great…no on eight, referring to the California proposition that rolled back marriage rights of
gay couples in that state. Rathjen says she was impressed by the grassroots nature of the events going on
around the country, which in Springfield drew people from Macomb, Galesburg,
Chicago, and Los Angeles.
“This protest is about much more than marriage to me,” Rathjen says. “It is about LGBTQ Americans refusing to be treated as second-class citizens and
about our community reconnecting with each other and our allies and engaging in
direct action.”
Bret Tate also responded to attempts to pit minority groups against one another
in the wake of the passage of the California referendum: “I hope that people will think critically about claims that the passage of
Proposition 8 was due to the mobilization of African-American and Latino
voters. Because it is only when we all come together that we can truly achieve
equality.”
This article appears in Nov 13-19, 2008.
