Five years ago today (Thursday, February 12), San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, just five weeks into his first term, stunned the world when he ordered city officials to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
Things haven't been the same since.
It was a stroke of genius that Newsom, aided in large part by City Attorney Dennis Herrera �" who would be tasked with heading to court to keep the nuptials going over the next several weeks �" selected February 12 as the day to make history. In observance of Lincoln's birthday, the courts were closed, meaning that the anti-same-sex marriage attorneys couldn't rush before a judge to have the weddings halted. For one day at least, there was unbridled joy in City Hall. That next day when the courts opened, the anti-same-sex marriage attorneys were unsuccessful in persuading a judge to stop the marriages; they continued until the state Supreme Court stepped in that March. Supporters of marriage equality were euphoric, and more than 4,000 couples tied the knot during what has become known as the "Winter of Love." Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger made sensational claims on national television of "riots in the streets" resulting from the marriages, but he never stepped foot in the city to actually see for himself, and if he had, he would have been wrong because there were no riots, or anything else, except for a few religious conservatives who drove around City Hall with homophobic placards.
Newsom's decision, the result of attending then-President George W. Bush's State of the Union address a couple weeks before and becoming angry when the president endorsed and called for a federal marriage amendment, was bold. And while much work remains to be done in the fight for marriage equality, even as the LGBT community is angry over the passage of Proposition 8, we must remember on this anniversary that the ground has shifted in the last five years.
Back in 2004, a presidential election year, Newsom stood apart from most of his Democratic colleagues. Famously, Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-California) chided Newsom for moving "too much, too fast, too soon" on the issue of same-sex marriage and suggested that Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry lost the election because of Newsom's actions. That turned out not to be true. But last year, Feinstein came full circle, with forceful support for same-sex marriage in a campaign ad against Prop 8. That ad was the most effective of the No on 8 campaign, according to pollster David Binder's post-election survey.
In 2000, Vermont Governor Howard Dean became a trailblazer when he signed civil union legislation. Now, nine years later, that parallel (but unequal) recognition for same-sex couples has become the default position for many straight Democratic lawmakers �" and some Republican moderates. During the last presidential election, for example, all of the major Democratic candidates supported civil unions, while the two long-shot candidates backed same-sex marriage. Of course, civil unions are not marriage, but the mere fact that political leaders are now embracing them is a testament to how far the community has come.
In the aftermath of Prop 8's passage, there is renewed activism on the part of many LGBTs who were jolted from their complacency. Same-sex families and couples are more visible now than ever before. One group, the Courage Campaign, which works to advance progressive policies, has posted an extremely powerful video, "Fidelity," that shows LGBT families and straight allies asking the state Supreme Court not to "divorce" couples who married last year. "Many people have told us that it has helped them express the meaning of marriage equality to their friends and family �" and the pain caused by the passage of Prop 8 �" for the first time," Courage Campaign Chair Rick Jacobs said in a statement sent to supporters. "Fidelity" can be viewed at http://www.couragecampaign.org.
Through it all, Newsom has never wavered. Not when the Yes on 8 campaign tried to paint him as a bogeyman with its "Whether you like it or not" ad that featured a clip of Newsom speaking at a packed City Hall news conference just after last year's historic Supreme Court victory that legalized same-sex marriage. Not in his speeches to numerous organizations and political leaders. And not in his firm commitment to equality for all.
Newsom and Herrera stood up for same-sex marriage when few others did five years ago. They never equivocated from their sense of fairness and justice. Both put themselves on the line when most politicians were playing it safe.
They did the right thing on February 12, 2004, and remain true to their convictions.