Alexis Kleinman '12 (l.), Newton Allen '11 (center) and Jessica Lander '10 hold signs in Firestone Plaza on Thursday afternoon as they take part in a four-day demonstration against California's Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage that passed on Nov. 4. "We're not froshophobes. We just think they should stay on the grass," they chanted to passersby.
Also known as "The Princeton Sidewalk Protection Act," PP8 states that "only sidewalk use by sophomore, juniors, and seniors is valid or recognized in Princeton."
The act seeks to satirize the passage of Proposition 8, a ballot measure in California that eliminated the right of same-sex couples to marry, PP8 movement founder Chris Simpson '09 explained. Freshmen are equivalent to same-sex couples in California in the eyes of the PP8 movement.
The group seeks to bring national debate about the California ballot measure to Princeton.
"The overall effort stems from a frustration with the lack of political engagement and discussion on campus, and in particular the absence of any outrage over the seemingly immoral/illegal/unconstitutional way in which gay marriage was banned in California," Simpson said in an e-mail.
To get students to identify with what Simpson called the "injustice" of Proposition 8, he explained that PP8 is taking painstaking efforts to heighten its similarities to California's Proposition 8. "We hope to parallel the language and actions of the real Prop 8 as much as possible, as we believe the injustice speaks for itself and needs no exaggeration," Simpson said.
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