NY Times: Civil Rights in California

[marmar]

Civil Rights in California
Published: December 10, 2010


However the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit rules in California’s pivotal same-sex marriage battle — and it should uphold the civil rights of Americans — the court has already set one standard that the Supreme Court should follow.

Lawyers on both sides of the struggle sparred over questions of legal procedure and civil rights for two intense hours on Monday — and the whole country had a chance to watch, thanks to the court’s decision to allow C-Span to televise the argument. The dignified proceeding only increased our regret over the moment that was lost in January when the Supreme Court abruptly intervened to block the planned broadcasting of the trial that led to the appeal. The court has persisted far too long in its refusal to allow unobtrusive camera coverage of its own oral arguments.

The central issue before the appellate court was whether Proposition 8, California’s voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage, violates the United States Constitution. In August, in Federal District Court, Judge Vaughn Walker held that it did. After a nearly three-week trial, Judge Walker found no rational basis for the proposition’s inherent discrimination, which he said violated rights to equal protection and due process of law. ..........(more3)

The complete piece is at: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/11/opinion/11sat1.html?_r=1&hp