The Price Of Prop. 8

This article posted on October 22nd, 2009, written by Thomas Messner, explains many effects of Proposition 8. Supporters of Proposition 8 in California have been subjected to harassment, intimidation, vandalism, racial scapegoating, blacklisting, loss of employment, economic hardships, angry protests, violence, at least one death threat, and gross expressions of anti-religious bigotry. Arguments for same-sex marriage are based fundamentally on the idea that limiting marriage to the union of husband and wife is a form of bigotry, irrational prejudice, and even hatred against homosexual persons. As this ideology seeps into the culture more generally, individuals and institutions that support marriage as the union of husband and wife risk paying a price for that belief in many legal, social, economic, and cultural contexts.


When I read this article I Felt ashamed that people against felt the extreme need to lash out against people who are for it. I read about quite a few events of vandalism and similar crimes and it reminded me of the horror stories of Halloween. The ones where random teenager keys your car, or eggs your house. But these acts are real, they have happened and continue to happen. It made me think about why people would do such things and the article states it is becuase they believe Prop 8 is hateful and wrong. Aren't those crimes hateful? Are the wrong?

Main Points and Evidence-

" Many reports of hostility toward Prop 8 supporters involve acts of vandalism. An elderly couple who put a Yes on 8 sign in their yard had a block thrown through their window."

"Some individuals found their property vandalized with spray paint. Vandals spray-painted vehicles, garages, fences, and Yes on 8 signs in Yucaipa, California."

My Questions Are:

Do the Vandalizers realize that by acting that way they re just as hateful as Prop. 8 as a whole?

Why does the issue keep coming up?

Source- Messner, Thomas. "The Price of Prop 8." The Heritage Foundation October 22nd, 2009.