California Supreme Court Upholds Prop. 8

California high court upholds Prop. 8 L.A. Times — The California Supreme Court's decision Tuesday to uphold Proposition 8 and existing same-sex marriages left in place all rights for California's gays and lesbians except access to the label "marriage," but it provided little protection from future ballot measures that could cost gays and other minorities more rights, lawyers and scholars said Tuesday. In a 6-1 ruling, the court said the November ballot measure that restored a ban on same-sex marriage was a limited constitutional amendment, not a wholesale revision that would have required a two-thirds vote of the Legislature to be placed before voters. click to read complete article

Protests in S. California Over Gay Marriage Ban Fox News — More than 1,500 protesters are gathered at a rally in West Hollywood, expressing their opposition to the California Supreme Court's decision to uphold the state's gay marriage ban. Police said Tuesday that the rally has been peaceful, with no arrests reported. Los Angeles County sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore estimated the crowd could be up to 2,000 people. click to read complete article

California voters likely to revisit same-sex marriage next year San Francisco Chronicle — The next same-sex marriage battle in California will be fought over a referendum aimed at the November 2010 ballot that is likely to include door-to-door campaigning in Bible-belt areas of the state that backed Proposition 8. The battlegrounds will not be in San Francisco or West Hollywood but in places like Fresno, the geographic center of California where proponents of same-sex marriage will hold their first high-profile event Saturday. click to read complete article