In response to the “execute the gays” proposed ballot initiative, LGBT Weekly has created a Facebook page and ipetition to request that Attorney General Kamala Harris, Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins and Senate President Kevin De Leon work to bring forth legislation that will address the problem of ballot measures that infringe upon the civil rights of California citizens. http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/protect-civil-rights-chnge-the-california-ballot and https://www.facebook.com/pages/Change-the-California-Ballot-Initiative-Process/1610315779182036?ref=hl
“The recent Sodomite Suppression Act ballot measure filing highlights the need for fundamental changes to the ballot initiative process in California,” said Stampp Corbin, publisher of LGBT Weekly. “This is about protecting all Californians from challenges to their basic civil rights simply by paying $200 to the Attorney General’s office to get a measure on the ballot. Under the current process any ballot initiative can be placed before the voter without respect to the constitutionality of that initiative,” Corbin continued. “I could place a measure on the ballot to deny woman equal pay, to eliminate the Latino the right to vote, or to deny a particular group to practice their religion. All I need to do is collect the required signatures. That does not make sense.”
While it is not an easy task to collect the over 365,000 signatures required to get a measure on the ballot, it is legal to pay people to gather signatures which is how Proposition 8 and other measures were able to get controversial ballot initiatives before the electorate. The number of signatures required to place a measure on the ballot is 5% of the people that voted in the previous gubernatorial election.
“All fair minded Californians should sign the petition to get the legislature to act. Whatever your political stripe, race, ethnicity, or gender, you should sign the petition to ensure that everyone’s civil rights are protected from unconstitutional ballot initiatives.” Corbin said. The petition is symbolically seeking 366,000 signatures, the number required to put a ballot measure before the electorate.
Please don’t allow hate bashing ballots