ACLU Urges Court To Strike Down Prop 8

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: (212) 549-2666; media@aclu.org

SAN FRANCISCO – The American Civil Liberties Union, Lambda Legal and the National Center for Lesbian Rights today filed a friend-of-the-court brief in Perry v. Schwarzenegger urging Judge Vaughn Walker to strike down Proposition 8 as unconstitutional.

The following is a statement by James Esseks, Director of the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Project of the ACLU:

“The Constitution of the United States demands that all Americans be treated equally. Proposition 8, which says same-sex couples may not marry, plainly does not do that. It is unconstitutional, and the court should strike it down as plaintiffs ask.

“Prop 8 is deeply offensive to the American ideal of equality. The laws of California are clear that same-sex couples deserve the same treatment under the law as heterosexual couples. Prop 8 calls same-sex couples "partnered" instead of "married" simply to say same-sex couples are not as good. But the Constitution doesn't allow the law to demean anyone like that. The court should strike it down.”

A copy of the brief filed today is available here.