I decided to start a project to try to put together a timeline with details about Mormon church involvement in Prop 8 and gay marriage, using news reports, blog postings and other information to try to paint a picture of what was going on inside the Mormon church. This was without question a highly involved campaign at all levels of the church, not simply the random free efforts of Mormon church members.

Kevin Miniter, who was arrested in the widely seen footage during the initial Prop 8 protest march the day following the election, has spoken to the Washington Blade to recount his story.

I have to admit that while protesting, I wondered what might happen if I were to be arrested. Not surprisingly, Kevin makes it pretty clear that it wasn’t pleasant.  In the end, they released him after 2 days, presumably without charges. But he was released with bruising and bleeding resulting from a questionable use of force when subduing him. Seems to be that they were using him as an example to keep the rest of the crowd back. The video below shows the event.

We previously posted about a complaint filed by Californians Against Hate about the amount of money and non-monetary contributions reported to the State of California for Prop 8. The state has officially opened an investigation, and now some outside opinion is chiming in with support.  Yesterday, the New York York Times editorial board said, “Based on the facts that have come out so far, the state is right to look into whether the church broke state laws by failing to report campaign-related expenditures.”

It turns out that the Massachusetts family at the center of the Prop 8 campaign isn’t just a random couple who feel that their parental rights were infringed upon. The Bay Area Reporter (B.A.R.) reports that Robb and Robin Wirthlin, who introduced themselves to California voters in a Yes on 8 ad as the unwitting parents of a boy who was read the gay-friendly book King and King in his Massachusetts classroom, are not only Mormon, and possibly sought out this controversy, but they are related to one of the Mormon’s key strategists: Richard “Dick” Wirthlin.

OK, I know this title is a bit incendiary, and perhaps discussion should not be limited to Mormons.  But since I only know about Mormonism from being raised in the LDS church, that’s all I feel qualified to comment about. I often wonder to what degree I’ve been shaped by my Mormon upbringing, and sometimes feel that I’m trying to undo some of it, through therapy and other personal development, while embracing other parts. It’s terribly confusing.

Mollie at GetReligion.org has posted about media coverage of Prop 8 and questions if the media has been effective in covering the complaints being made by the protesters at the Mormon temples and the response from Mormons and the Mormon church. She states:

When organizing a protest, the location is a key part of the narrative you’re trying to push. Reporters should include the reason why the location was picked. And when the target of a protest, you should have the right to defend yourselves.

Richard Raddon, the Mormon director of the LA Film Festival, has resigned from his job following the uproar of controversy around his $1500 donation to the Yes on 8 campaign.

The donation came to light lmost two weeks ago, a revelation that caused Raddon to tender his resignation to Film Independent. At the time, the board did not accept Raddon’s offer, though the move didn’t quite stem the debate over Raddon’s future and whether a potential boycott would devastate the festival when it returns next summer. 

From the Washington Post, by Dan Wentzel:

A week after the election, I was riding the bus home in Santa Monica when we went past one of the many protests around the city against the narrow passage of Proposition 8, which amended the California constitution to eliminate marriage rights for an entire class of people.

While I wholeheartedly embrace free speech, sometimes it gets a little tiresome and repetitive.  I also don’t think spam is to be embraced as free speech as there are costs to those on the receiving end.  Since I’m hoping this blog goes beyond the common arguments being slung around, I do moderate the comments. I’ve allowed a few opposing comments to be posted, but if the arguments are tired, I don’t want to pollute the pages here.  With that disclaimer, here is a recent exchange that I had privately with someone posting a comment that I rejected.

DailyKos brought this survey about public opinion about Prop 8 since the election to my attention, and it holds what could be good news.  It found that 8% of the the people who voted for Prop 8 have changed their minds since the election.  Even better, 13% of Blacks who voted for Prop 8 have changed their mind.