The A.S. Council adopted a resolution that opposes amending the U.S. Constitution to ban gay marriage at their March 10 meeting. More than 50 people attended the meeting to show their support of the resolution, which passed by a vote of 17-2 with four abstentions.
The legislation resolves that the A.S. Council “supports access to marriage for people regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation or biological sex” and urges representatives at the state and federal level to oppose banning same-sex marriages.
“I think this is the A.S. saying that we do stand up for equal treatment and equal rights,” A.S. President Jeremy Paul Gallagher said.
The resolution points out that marital status is taken into account in the formula used to determine financial aid. Also, the resolution cites the UCSD Principles of Community, which charge students, faculty and staff to “confront and appropriately respond” to acts of discrimination based on sexual orientation.
A.S. Student Affirmative Action Committee Representative Daniel Gonzales helped to author the resolution in response to requests he received from students.
“In addition to giving support to the queer community on this campus, the resolution will also be a powerful tool in organizing and advocating on those issues,” Gonzales said.
The Graduate Student Association passed a similar resolution against a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage on March 8.
“All discrimination affects us as students,” GSA Vice President External Heather Flowe said. “These forms of discrimination being proposed on the federal level through this constitutional amendment particularly impact a student’s ability to secure housing, get insurance and/or obtain financial aid, to name only a few effects.”
Revelle College Sophomore Senator Ashley Aluisi and Earl Warren College Junior Senator Everly Mariano were the only senators to cast negative votes on the resolution.
Aluisi expressed a need to represent the voice of students who are in favor of the constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage even though it was a difficult decision for her to make.
“I knew that this would be passed,” Aluisi said. “But I knew that these people needed their voice, too. I was going to be their voice, as hard as it was for me.”
Mariano called these resolutions ineffective in general, saying they end up having few visible effects. Mariano also took issue with A.S. Council adopting an official position on a topic that is controversial because a single position does not incorporate the views of all UCSD students.
Students were joined by the director and assistant director of the LGBT Resource Center, both of whom appeared at the meeting to urge the council to adopt the resolution. Paul Harris, manager of the information desk at Geisel Library, also addressed the council during the public input portion of the meeting.
“No one is asking you to like gays and lesbians,” Harris said. “At some point, you need to … realize that if you oppose this common sense resolution, you are denying other human beings who are very similar to yourself the same choices that you may enjoy.”
A.S. Vice President External Harish Nandagopal plans to start a campaign to alert lawmakers to the A.S. Council’s position.
“I think A.S. has to take a stance on this,” Nandagopal said. “There’s no such thing as political neutrality.”
After no debate on the council floor, Gonzales moved for a roll-call vote on the resolution. When the result was announced, the council and members of the public applauded and gave a standing ovation.
“I think that any time the Associated Students can stand up against discrimination of a particular portion of the UCSD population, we all benefit from it,” A.S. Finance Assistant Kirsten Bowen said after the resolution was passed.
Thurgood Marshall College junior Jake Gaidarenko came to the council meeting because it is his only point of influence as a non-U.S. citizen, he said.
“It’s very important for me to see that the school actually backs me up,” Gaidarenko said.
President George W. Bush announced his support for a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage last month in response to thousands of same-sex marriages in San Francisco. The A.S. resolution specifically cites bills H.J. Res. 56 and S.J. Res. 26, which must be approved by two-thirds of each house of Congress before the amendment can be submitted to the states.
One clause in the A.S. resolution enumerates a host of organizations that will receive a copy of the resolution. The list ranges from local media organizations to lawmakers and the California and U.S. Supreme Courts.
“As students, historically we’ve been involved in some of the most critical movements in our century — the civil rights movement, divestment in South Africa because of apartheid…” Gonzales said. “This is just the beginning.”
