Blankenhorn testified at Prop 8 Trial, Now says we should work for marriage equality

by Brian Leubitz

In many ways, it was actually better for David Blankenhorn to be on the other side. He was something of a comic figure. He testified on behalf of the ProtectMarriage.com crew, and ultimately got so twisted around that his testimony likely did them more harm than good. In fact, he ended up saying that we would be “more American” on the day that we allowed marriage equality.

So it shouldn’t be all that shocking that he’s decided to write an op-ed in the New York Times calling for an end to the discrimination against same-sex couples. (h/t P8TT) Now, I’m not trying to be too cynical here, but how else was David Blankenhorn going to get an op-ed in the New York Times?

But, I digress, here’s a snippet on his change of heart:

But there are more good things under heaven than these beliefs. For me, the most important is the equal dignity of homosexual love. I don’t believe that opposite-sex and same-sex relationships are the same, but I do believe, with growing numbers of Americans, that the time for denigrating or stigmatizing same-sex relationships is over. Whatever one’s definition of marriage, legally recognizing gay and lesbian couples and their children is a victory for basic fairness.

*** **** ***

And to my deep regret, much of the opposition to gay marriage seems to stem, at least in part, from an underlying anti-gay animus. To me, a Southerner by birth whose formative moral experience was the civil rights movement, this fact is profoundly disturbing.

So, is he saying that he is just now figuring out that much of the opposition to marriage equality is/was animus? Or, was his faith in his position strong enough that he could look past that. Either way, either he’s insensitive or kind of slow.

But, there is value in the symbolic import of having somebody who testified in favor of Prop 8 changing their position, for whatever reason. If Blankenhorn can truly persuade a few folks to change their minds too, then perhaps his decades arguing vociferously against marriage equality can be forgiven.