The Progressive Democrats of America have a new chapter, Progressive Democrats of the Central Coast, which meets on the first Wednesday of each month. National PDA, selected as the most important political group of 2008 by The Nation, began in 2004 after the Democratic National Convention. A group of convention delegates formulated the intention of working both inside and outside of the Democratic Party to further progressive policies. Their five core issues were ending the occupation of Iraq, promoting social justice, reforming health care, promoting election reform, and combating global warming.

The new PDCC chapter had their organizational meeting in January, at which time the consensus was to focus on local issues by working with local activist groups advocating environmental issues, attempting to defeat Wal-Mart’s efforts to open a mega store on Victoria, lobbying for single-payer health care, and reversing the disastrous Proposition 8 passage. While local, practical action takes priority, some members of the chapter also opted to participate in the conference calls scheduled by PDA National each month in order to profit from the experiences of activists all over the country.

At the February meeting on Wednesday the 4th, both national and local issues were discussed. Gail Hodgson reported on the PDA conference call on global warming that had contrasted the cap and trade policy with a carbon tax and concluded that energy consumers would actually pay less in the long run with a carbon tax. Kendra Gonzales, an active member of the Green Party, then gave a presentation about the activities of the Green Coalition, a newly formed environmental group focusing on alternative energy.

The Green Coalition, which meets on the 4th Thursday of each month at City Corps in Ventura, has as their first project the passage and implementation of Assembly Bill 811. This legislation would provide financing for homeowners to install solar panels, and the loans would be repaid through property taxes spread over several years. Members of the Green Coalition represent green businesses, city officials and employees, and other activist groups such as CAUSE and VCCool. Kendra emphasized the practical experience the members have in alternative energy technologies and in community organizing.

Cindy Peister, who had just finished a PDA conference call on impeachment efforts, distributed material detailing the combined efforts of NIN, the National Impeachment Network, and PDA to have a special prosecutor appointed to investigate the apparent criminal actions of the Bush Administration in matters of torture, wire tapping of U.S. citizens, falsifying intelligence reports, and other illegal strategies. After Cindy’s presentation, members of PDCC wrote letters to newly-appointed Attorney General Eric Holder requesting that he appoint a special prosecutor immediately. In addition calls, e-mails, and faxes to the Department of Justice would be undertaken daily during these crucial first weeks of the new administration..

The PDCC meetings on the first Wednesday of the month are held at 6:30 p.m. at 295 Arcade Drive in Ventura. All who wish to attend are welcome. If directions are needed, call Gail Hodgson at 794-0125 or Susan Jones at 824-5588.

Our good friends and allies at the Courage Campaign continue to take an increasing lead in doing excellent work on behalf of progressive causes throughout California. While there have been many arguments and recriminations after the election concerning who and what was to blame for the final result on Proposition 8, it is nearly universally agreed that a comparative lack of local, independent organization and grassroots, nuts-and-bolts electoral know-how on the issue was a significant contributing factor.

The Courage Campaign has therefore undertaken to conduct Camp Courage, a full day’s program of activist training in advance of the coming fight to repeal Proposition 8, should the California Supreme Court decline to overturn the mobocratic assault on minority rights. Speaking from experience, I can unequivocally say that training programs such as these are by far the most valuable way any activist can spend his/her time, and that the Courage Campaign knows as well as any organization in the state how to organize, deliver votes, and take the fight to the political opposition. From the Courage Campaign website:

To repeal Prop 8, we will need a grassroots army of activists empowered with the tools and skills necessary to effectively organize their own communities.

That’s what propelled President-elect Barack Obama into the White House and that’s what it will take to restore marriage equality for same-sex couples in California.

And that’s why we are kicking off 2009 by launching “Camp Courage” — a training program inspired by “Camp Obama” that will use community organizing methods that have developed leaders and nurtured progressive social movements for decades.

The first Camp Courage starts with a special one-day training in Los Angeles on January 25. Of course, we can’t build an army to repeal Prop 8 in one day in Los Angeles. It will take two-day training camps across California in places like Fresno, San Diego, Sacramento, San Luis Obispo and San Francisco.

Of course, they can’t conduct such a massive project without significant support. If you’re willing and able, please consider chipping in a few bucks–and I hope to see you there in Los Angeles on the Sunday 25th to begin the fight to restore equal rights for all the citizens of our great state.

By Andre Verdun

On November 19th, 2008 the California Supreme Court agreed to consider a legal challenge by several groups who are contesting the Constitutional validity of proposition 8 along with the legal status of same sex married couples that have entered into a legal marriage during the time same sex marriage was a recognized fundamental right.

Six of the seven Justices agreed to review the issue, at the urging of both the “Yes” and “No” on 8 campaigns, of whether or not Proposition 8 is an amendment to the California Constitution, as ProtectMarriage.com has insisted, or a revision to the Constitution as urged by the opponents Prop 8.
Joining in the argument that Prop 8 was an unconstitutional revision is, among others, the City and County of San Francisco, the City and County of Los Angeles, and 40 members of the California State Legislator who filed an amici brief (“friend of the court”) stating that Proposition 8 should be struck down as invalid because it usurped their power as a legislative body by bypassing their duty to vote on the Constitutional revision.

The campaign for No on Prop 8 sought the courts answer to this identical question in the weeks leading up to the election, but as expected, the Court denied review for lack of “justiceability”; that is, the case was not ripe for review.

The specific question before the court now is: Whether taking away a single fundamental right from a protected class of people is a revision to the California Constitution? This particular question has never been before the Supreme Court because the State of California has never sought before Proposition 8 to single out a classified group of people and change the Constitution to eviscerate a fundamental right.

While this specific question before the California Supreme Court is unique, the court has on 9 previous occasions ruled on the issue of “revision/amendment” analysis, of which in three cases the California Supreme Court overturned a Constitutional initiative as an illegal revision. Under Article XVIII of the California Constitution, an amendment is something that adds to the Constitution in a way that better carries out the purpose of the document within the lines of the original instrument, while a revision is something that changes the function or structure of the document or changes the basic governmental plan.

Therefore, the No on 8 campaign will argue that allowing the majority to simply vote away a fundamental right from a protected class of citizens changes directly the substantial entirety of the Constitution by not only altering the 5 provisions the Court said required them to grant same sex couples the fundamental right to marry in In Re: Marriage Cases, but also revises the entire “spirit” of the Constitution by stripping away the Courts duties to protect minority groups and protected citizens from discrimination against them by the Government and majority rule.

The Court will also determine the legal status of the marriages that took place before Proposition 8’s passage; however, because no brief has yet to be filed by either side as to the legal arguments for their respective side, one could only guess as to the legal arguments to be urged by either side. The “No on 8” group will likely argue that there are serous state and federal Constitutional issues with stripping away a vested liberty interest away from citizens without proper procedural due process of law, which requires formal proceedings before any liberty interest can be taken away. Also, the “No” campaign will argue that the marriage ban cannot be retroactive because there was no language in the Constitution that specifically applied it retroactively. The Yes Campaign will argue that the plain statement of Proposition 8 would require that no marriage, whether legal before to November 4th, 2008 or not, cannot be recognized as valid in the State of California.

All briefing is due by January 15th and the Court Press Secretary says that oral arguments could be held as early as March 2009.

Prop 8 proponents threaten California judges. Read about it in today’s New York Times article “With Same-Sex Marriage, a Court Takes on the People’s Voice” by Jesse McKinley at http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/21/us/21marriage.html?_r=1&th&emc=th&oref=slogin

By Karin Quimby
Sunday, November 16, 2008

The vote on Proposition 8, which eliminated the civil right to marry for gay and lesbian couples in California, was a crushing, disgraceful vote. The moment I learned of the outcome, I felt like my home had fallen down on top of me. And atop my crumpled house and my shattered self sat self-righteous religious folks pleased that they had managed to crush me and my people. They have “saved” marriage for themselves, for the time being. They have confirmed that they are ignorant at best, or at worst, claim the authority to judge. They have contributed to what will one day be remembered as a shameful chapter in American history.

I wrote before the election that we need to talk to one another, to share our personal stories, to recognize how we are all human beings doing the best we can to live and love. I was heartened by the mothers and fathers of gay and lesbian children who showed up at our phone banks to share their stories with prospective voters. I was moved by the straight women and men who likewise volunteered because they want their children to grow up in a world where everyone is treated equally.

I have spent years consciously developing relationships with many people from many faiths to live out the call to love one another. I was, therefore, not prepared for the inhospitable venom that was spewed at me during the campaign and in the final vote, all in the name of “religious freedom.” When I heard “pervert” shouted at me, or listened to those on the phone tell me that God condemns homosexuals, such attacks felt very, very personal, while, at the same time, they were used to limit the civil rights of an entire group of people.

After this campaign, I now have to wonder who in my neighborhood, my workplace, my family, my church, my exercise class, or the grocery store line voted to eliminate my civil rights and on what basis they decided to do so? Were they afraid that their children would be taught that gays and lesbians have families and children and are human beings, too? Were they concerned that they would not be able to condemn homosexuals in their church? Or were they worried that heterosexual families are crumbling and need to blame it on someone other than themselves?

I have to wonder, do these people really not recognize my full personhood? Do they consider me an abomination? Do they think they are more deserving of civil rights than I am?

These are just some of the questions that I and my dear, wonderful friends and family are asking as we pick ourselves up off the floor and decide how to proceed, after this appalling public humiliation that dealt a crushing blow to our belief in the value of equality.

I know we have a lot of work to do to help people realize that gay and lesbian people are fully human — no better and no worse than heterosexuals — after centuries of religious teachings that would seem to tell us otherwise. That is why I am so grateful for the religious people in my life — evangelicals, Baptists, Mormons, Episcopalians, Catholics, Methodists, Lutherans, United Church of Christ, Unitarians, Muslims, Jews, Buddhists and many others who are spiritual, but not religious, and still others who want nothing to do with religion — all of whom truly, deeply, completely accept me and love me for who I am.

They are the ones who are helping us rebuild our fallen homes and who offer words of comfort to heal our hurt, battered selves. They walk with us and hold us up as we find our way through the wilderness of this “new America” that has voted to exclude us. I know the path will be long, and it certainly is painful, but, in the end, there will be reconciliation.

— Karin Quimby, Ph.D., of Ojai, is co-chairwoman of the No on Proposition 8 Campaign, Ventura County.

Yes, Ventura, there is a Progressive Left–and it came in force today for Join the Impact. It’s a common joke here that we live in “Ventucky“, though our situation less resembles that of the deep South and more that of a clinging outpost of Red, stuck between the swaths of Blue that are Los Angeles and Santa Barbara. We have the gag-worthy Gallegly as our representative, and even unprincipled liars like Tony Strickland somehow manage to attract over half the population here to vote for them. True, the demographics have been changing with voter registrations to match, but that has translated neither into electoral gains nor significant grassroots activity in the Democratic and progressive community–though that is changing due to the tireless efforts of people like our new VCDP Communications Director Brian Leshon.

But today a sea of Blue washed up on the Ventura shores in front of the Old San Buenaventura Mission to let Ventura and all of California know that yes, we do exist. And no, we’re not taking it lying down anymore. Unfortunately, the pictures here don’t do the crowd justice; an amateur photographer is emailing me some pics that I’ll be putting up as soon as I get them.

The Join the Impact protestors began our march at noon in front of the Mission, walking through downtown, over the 101 Freeway overpass and back again, before regrouping on both sides of the street in front of the mission, with overflow into Mission Park.

On the overpass…

I’ve been involved in many protests over the years, but I have to say without question that this was the most amazing, uplifting demonstration I’ve ever been a part of, for a few very important reasons:

• Focus. The bane of the progressive protest march over the last few decades has been the lack of attention to message unity. Markos Moulitsas discusses this problem at length in his book Crashing the Gate: activists such as those with A.N.S.W.E.R. coalition end up using the occasion to fight for causes ranging from freeing Mumia to impeaching Bush to end the wars in Iraq to acceptance of LGBT rights. Here, there was but one message and one focus, reinforced by the ubiquitous chant: “What do we want? Equal Rights! When do we want it? Now!”
• Diversity and Family-Friendliness. All too often the word “diversity” has been seen especially by those on the Right as a politically correct code word for the disproportionately vocal influence of one or more specific minorities. But for the actual crowd that attended, it might have been easy to dismiss this protest simply as the gay community venting its frustrations. On the contrary: the couples that had gathered skewed more hetero than same-sex, and many had brought their families and small children along with them. The visual impact of this phenomenon on the conservative and fence-sitting mind cannot be exaggerated. Add to this the multi-racial, truly rainbow aspect of the event, and it was not only a joy to behold, but a consternation to those who would insult this movement as merely a special interest, rather than a truly broad-based fight for equal Civil Rights.
• The Support of the Community. There were no counter-protesters anywhere in sight, and most of the cars that passed us were honking, even as their passengers rolled down their windows to flash a quick thumbs up or peace sign. Sure, there were a few nuts in pickup trucks screaming some gibberish about eternal damnation and displaying a hateful middle finger here and there (one of them was so consumed with rage that he very nearly rear-ended the car in front of him), but they were themselves a distinct minority. Downtown Ventura was truly supportive of our cause, and it felt truly righteous being a part of the next step for civil rights in America. As one baby boomer activist said,
  

  “Man, this really is just like the 60s. I haven’t seen a gathering with this kind of positive energy in a long, long time. It’s amazing to see.”

I couldn’t agree more. My girlfriend KK and I spent the final 45 minutes gathering signatures for the Courage Campaign’s Proposition 8 repeal. On that form was a checkbox asking if the signatory would like to volunteer for the cause. Nearly every single box was checked, and nearly every single zip code a Ventura resident. These people were not here just to vent for a day: they were here to be a part of something bigger for the long term.

It was a beautiful sight to behold, and gives me hope for the long term not only for the future of civil rights in America, but for the future of progressive politics here in “Ventucky” as well.