On the Mark

Happy Holidays! Tis the season for shopping at Union Square for the perfect gift, enjoying a bowl of delicious clam chowder at Fisherman's Wharf, ice-skating outside at the Embarcadero Center and taking stock of all that we have to be thankful for. Given the results of November's election, it may seem hard to be full of cheer. It was a tough year for many of us who worked so hard to restore honor, truth and integrity to the White House and the U.S. Congress. There were a few victories across the country in state houses and governors' races, but not nearly enough to counterbalance the re-election of one the most mean spirited administrations in memory.

Yet, even with these disappointments, when you look for a place to give thanks this holiday season, you need not look further than your own backyard. Here in California, Democrats held every one of our legislative seats in spite of the efforts of a popular Governor and tens of millions of special interest dollars spent to defeat us. Democrats will return to Sacramento with strong voter support to continue our fight for workers', consumers' and environmental protections, at the same time we attempt to restore fiscal responsibility to state government.

Also, the fight for equality continues. As planned, I will re-introduce my marriage equality bill on December 6 with the support of recently elected legislators for whom many of us campaigned these past months. In Assembly races to fill seats being vacated by Democrats, 100% of the candidates who pledged their support for marriage equality beat their anti-gay challengers. The fact that voters in these districts embraced candidates in support of equality for all provides us a light in the midst of this darkness.

I commend state party chair Art Torres for pointing out the lack of facts backing up the claim that the issue of marriage equality was responsible for John Kerry's defeat. In Chair Torres' words, "I believe that historically an incumbent president at war is always difficult to defeat. The main factor in this campaign was terrorism and Iraq. On both counts, Bush prevailed, especially among married women – the so-called 'security moms.'"

We can also be thankful to have leaders like Gavin Newsom, Nancy Pelosi, Phil Angelides, Kevin Shelley, Steve Westley, John Garamendi, Fabian Nunez and Ted Kennedy who understand that civil rights and full citizenship, including marriage equality, for all Americans are core moral values of our great democracy. We need to articulate these moral values proudly, loudly and repeatedly. We have an obligation to reach out to our friends who are struggling with these issues because the fight is difficult. And we must fight back those who would limit life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness to only a chosen group.

As long as the love of same sex couples and their families are denied equal status and protection under the law, a destructive stereotype is perpetuated which suggests that there is something inherently inferior and unstable about the way we love. That is our common humanity. There is nothing that all of us walking this planet have more in common, regardless of our race, religion, creed, nation of origin, the language that we speak, than our ability to love – and our desire to love another human being in an intimate and committed fashion. That is the one thing we all share.

We can be buoyed and supported by the words of Dr. Martin Luther King from his Letter from a Birmingham Jail in April, 1963. He said, "Let us hope that the dark clouds of prejudice will soon pass away and the deep fog of misunderstanding will be lifted from our fear-drenched communities and in some not too distant tomorrow the radiant stars of love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty."

I am personally thankful for the support and love I get everyday from my neighbors in the 13th Assembly District. It means the world to me. The more ground we gain, the more road blocks will be thrown our way. Knowing that we are on the road together gives me the strength to keep going and keep fighting. I wish you and your family a joyous holiday season.