Lost your job, can’t find another one, you can’t see a doctor and your home is being taken away?
Well, fear not, my friend, for after months of lobbying, the governor of the great state of Washington has just selflessly made herself a media darling by signing a bill that will … change the definition of “domestic partners” to that of “married couple”.
Never mind. You’re screwed.
It’s official. On June 7th, gay couples will be able to marry in the State of Washington.
As a lifelong supporter of gay marriage, one would think that I’m fairly psyched about this development. For some reason, however, I just can’t muster any enthusiasm.
In the late 2000′s, Washington passed a domestic partnership law that was pretty comprehensive. It didn’t change domestic partnership to “marriage”, but given what it did provide for (the same rights with more ease and convenience of formation), it was just semantics.
This year, however, Governor Christine Gregoire decided that, since she couldn’t solve the state’s budget issues, couldn’t solve the education issues, couldn’t solve the healthcare issues, couldn’t solve the foreclosure issues, couldn’t solve the growing wage gap issues, couldn’t solve the unemployment issues, couldn’t solve the law enforcement issues, couldn’t solve the transportation issues, couldn’t solve any of the 100+ more important issues that face this state … she would take up the life-and-death issue of changing the title of “domestic partnership” to “marriage”. She decided that this would be the signature issue of her tenure.
And we wonder why this state has so many problems.
Look, don’t get me wrong. I’m happy that gay folks get the title they have so desperately wanted. It’s all fine and good. As a priority for the Governor, however, well, I’m not nearly as happy.
I wish Christine would get half as fired up about the myriad of other issues facing us as she was about this mostly-ceremonial issue. In modern-day Washington, discrimination against gay people is just not a huge problem. On average, gay folks are more affluent and politically active than their hetero counterparts.
Instead of spending so much time attacking specious discrimination against a politically powerful group, and selfishly basking in the national spotlight for her supposed dedication to hip causes, I’d rather see the resources spent on helping all Washingtonians, regardless of their popularity.
My 2 cents, and it’s worth every penny.
I used to think that “domestic partnership” was sufficient, but I’ve since evolved my thinking that domestic partnership is a “separate but equal” approach. What’s the harm in just allowing same sex marriage?
I don’t think there is any harm in allowing it. As a matter of fact, I’m all for it. It’s just a question of priorities.
Let me give you an example:
When a woman gets married in the State of Washington, she is legally permitted to adopt the groom’s name on the spot, and her new name must be recognized by all state agencies. Of course, she also has the right to keep her maiden name, or she has the right to hyphenate her last name.
If a man wants to adopt his bride’s last name, however, no state agency is required by law to recognize his new name. In order to to force the issue, he must spend the time and money to secure a legal name change.
How does the King County Government explain this discrepancy?
Tradition.
To be specific: “Traditionally, the bride has taken the groom’s last name. If you are intending anything other than the traditional name change, check with each agency for its requirements to accomplish that. If an agency requires more than a certified copy of your marriage license, a court-ordered name change can be accomplished at King County District Court.”
Now, is this fair?
Of course not.
How many times have you heard it brought up in the legislature, however? How much time should we spend changing this law? Given the problems that face this state, how many taxpayer hours should be used to solve the issue of inequitable marital naming rights?
The fact is that injustices litter the laws of the USA and all 50 states. Tons upon tons of them. Some of these injustices effect the health and welfare of thousands or millions of human beings.
So, which do we solve first?
In general, we usually expect (hope?) that our legislators will use our time and money to conquer the most pressing of these injustices.
I’m not sure that this has been happening in Washington State.
First, the Governor spent damn-near two years selling a $5 billion tunnel under Downtown Seattle to the people of Washington, and she’s spent the last couple of months selling gay marriage.
I’m just not sure how well most Washingtonians are being served by these priorities.
If anything, the gross inequities in the family court system are a FAR greater civil rights problem than is gay marriage, but heterosexual men’s causes just aren’t hip right now, and thus get little attention.