Introducing Proposition 8

Proposition 8 (a.k.a. the California Marriage Protection Act) is an amendment that was made to California's Constitution (Section 7.5 of the Declaration of Rights stating, "only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California"). It limits marriage to that of one man to one woman. Before it was passed, California was only the second state to allow for same sex marriage. These marriages are still legal, even after the passage of Proposition 8.Opponents Of Proposition 8

Proponents of Proposition 8 argued that it was essential that only heterosexual marriage be constitutional. They went on to say that if we didn't change the constitution public schools would start teaching that gay marriage is okay and that gay people don't have the right to redefine marriage for everyone else.Proponents Of Proposition 8

Opponents of Proposition 8 argued that the freedom to marry is a fundamental part of our society. They believe the California constitution should allow everyone to have this right and that there shouldn't be different rules for everyone. Instead, they believe that equality is fundamentally guaranteed to each and every one of us in the Constitution.Campaigns For Proposition 8

The campaign for Proposition 8 raised $39.9 million while the campaign against it raised $43.3 million. This made them the highest funded campaign on any state ballot, surpassing all other campaigns (except for that of the President) in spending. There were protests and demonstrations throughout the entire state and even across the nation.

Numerous lawsuits were filed within the California Supreme Court by same sex couples and government entities that wanted to challenge the proposition's validity. These people also wanted to see how it would affect those same sex marriages that were already in existence. Strauss v. Horton

One such lawsuit that was filed was Strauss v. Horton. In this case the court upheld Proposition 8 and same sex marriages were allowed to stand because of the Grandfather clause principle. Perry v. Schwarzenegger

Judge Vaughn R. Walker held another case that challenged Proposition 8 on August 4, 2010. In the Perry v. Schwarzenegger case Proposition 8 was overturned as Judge Walker issued a stay in order to be able to determine the suspension of his ruling, pending appeal. The Ninth Circuit Court Of Appeals continued this stay, which kept Judge Walker's ruling on hold pending further appeal.