DAY NINE OF PROP. 8 TRIAL

Trial on Unconstitutionality of Prop. 8 Begins Day Nine in U.S. District Court;
Plaintiffs to Call Dr. Gregory Herek; Follows Revealing Testimony Today from William Tam

For latest information, visit www.equalrightsfoundation.org

The federal trial over the unconstitutionality of Proposition 8 will continue Friday, January 22 at 8:30 am with the plaintiffs calling Dr. Gregory Herek (details below), who comes on the heels of revealing testimony from Official Prop. 8 Proponent William Tam. Through Herek’s testimony, the plaintiffs’ legal team led by Theodore Olson and David Boies will continue to illustrate the discrimination and negative impact of Prop. 8.

The American Foundation for Equal Rights launched the Perry v. Schwarzenegger case and brought together Olson and Boies to lead the litigation.

As an Official Proponent of Prop. 8, Tam is responsible for putting the initiative on the ballot and taking over its defense in court by intervening in Perry v. Schwarzenegger. On the stand today, he confirmed that he “supervised the preparation of the appropriate language of Proposition 8.”

Boies questioned Tam about several statements against marriage equality, including a pro-Prop. 8 email that stated: “They lose no time in pushing the gay agenda — after legalizing same-sex marriage, they want to legalize prostitution. What will be next? On their agenda list is: legalize having sex with children;” that “The San Francisco City Government is under the rule of homosexuals” and that gay men were twelve times more likely to molest children.

The court has previously viewed Yes on Prop. 8 ads urging voters to “protect our children.” Now it’s apparent that this message was working in concert with the type of discriminatory communications we heard today from an Official Proponent of Prop. 8.

“That [Same-sex marriage] would lead to incest. That would lead to polygamy. If this is a civil right, what would prevent other groups form asking for the same right,” Tam testified in court today.

“It is very important our children won’t grow up to fantasize or think about ‘should I marry Jane or John when I grow up,’” Tam testified in court today.

Tam was also questioned in court about a media interview he gave regarding his work to pass Prop. 8 in which he said: “We hope to convince Asian-Americans that gay marriage will encourage more children to experiment with the gay lifestyle and that the lifestyle comes with all kinds of disease.”

Tam also testified to working with ProtectMarriage.com, the lead pro-Prop. 8 campaign committee, on signature gathering, messaging, rallies, debates, weekly grassroots conferences and in signing a “statement of unity” between himself and the campaign, which laid out a formal campaign structure including him and his organization, the Traditional Family Coalition. He also noted that he spent the majority of his working hours on passing Prop. 8 from January to November 2008.

Today also continued the cross-examination of plaintiff expert Dr. Gary Segura, who testified yesterday about the relative political power of gays and lesbians as a class of citizens, and their level of political vulnerability.

Taking the stand tomorrow will be Gregory M. Herek, Ph.D. a Professor of Psychology at the University of California at Davis. He will testify about the nature of sexual orientation; how mainstream mental health professionals and behavioral scientists regard homosexuality; the benefits conferred by marriage; stereotypes relating to lesbians and gay men; stigma and prejudice directed at lesbians and gay men; the harm to lesbians and gay men and their families as a consequence of being denied the right to marry; and how the institution of domestic partnerships differs from that of marriage and is linked with antigay stigma.

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