Court Transcripts of one of the witnesses for prop 8..by the way she was pulled out by the proponents of prop8

Katherine Young Deposition Transcript
JANUARY 20, 2010
Katherine Young Deposition – 11/13/2009

Q – Okay. In the course of the work that you have done, have you come to form an opinion as to whether gay people have been historically the subject of prejudice and discrimination?
A – Yes, there have been certainly points in history where that has been true.

Q – Okay. Let me use your word, “durability”. Do you believe that children are advantaged by increasing the durability of the relationship of the couple raising them?
A – Yes.
Q – And do you believe that the durability of the relationship of a gay couple is enhanced by permitting the gay couple to marry?
A – On that variable, yes.

Q – And you believe that allowing gay couples to marry will increase the durability of those gay couples relationships, correct?
A – Okay. I’ll say yes.

Q – Okay. And increasing the durability of those relationships is beneficial to the children that they’re raising, correct?
A – On that one factor, yes.

Q – And is it the case that the number of children being raised in families that you describe as the norm was decreasing significantly befor marriage in the United States?
A – It was decreasing.

Q – Okay. Is it the case that love and commitment are the reasons that most people feel for wanting to marry?
A – Today? Probably yes.
Q – Indeed, you have seen studies that indicate that, correct?
A – Yes.
Q – And you have not seen any studies that indicate the contrary, correct?
A – Correct.

Q – And do you believe that love and commitment are reasons that both gay people and heterosexuals have for want
A – Correct.
Q – This is a statement of the American Psychoanalytic Association and I want to direct your attention to the position statement issued by the American Psychoanalytic Association approved January seventeenth (17th), two thousand eight (2008), you see that title, “Marriage Resolution”?
A – Yeah, yeah.
Q – And let me ask you to look at the marriage resolution, it begins,”WHEREAS homosexuality is a normal variant of adult sexuality…”, you see that?
A – M’hm.
Q – Do you have any reason to disagree with that statement?
A – I would prefer to have a working definition of homosexuality here, but I have no basic problem with this.
Q – The second statement says, “WHEREAS gay men and lesbians possess the same potential and desire for sustained loving and lasting relationships as heterosexuals…”, you see that?
A – Yes.
Q – Do you agree with that?
A – Yes.
Q – The next statement says, “WHEREAS same-sex couples are raising children and have the same potential and desire as heterosexual couples to love and parent children…”, you see that?
A – Yes.
Q – Do you agree with that?
A – Yes.

Q – Okay. So, if you have a single parent, your view is it doesn’t make any difference whether that single parent is a male or a female, correct?
A – Correct.
Q – And your opinion is it doesn’t make any difference whether that single parent is gay or straight, correct?
A – Correct.

Q – My question is, is it your view that because something was the norm in the past, it should be continued in the future?
A – Okay, now, I’ll answer that question. It’s not…do I answer it?
Q -Yes.
A – Okay, not necessarily.
Q – Okay.
A – Just because something is a norm, it doesn’t necessarily mean it is an appropriate norm, and it has to then be reassessed in the contemporary context to see if t norm should remain.

Q – All right. We talked earlier about the fact that gay people have historically been subject to prejudice and discrimination, you recall that?
A – Yes.
Q – Now, it’s the case that women have also historically been subject to prejudice and discrimination, correct?
A – Correct.
Q – And the prejudice and discrimination against women, like the prejudice and discrimination against gay people, was often justified by religion assertions and beliefs, correct?
A – Sometimes it was, yes.
Q – Often it was, correct?
A – Often it was.
Q – And the discrimination and prejudice against women was also often justified by the argument that it promoted or protected the traditional family, correct?
A – Yes.
Q – And various racial groups including Blacks have historically been subject to prejudice and discrimination, correct?
A – Correct.
Q – And that prejudice and discrimination, again, like the prejudice and discrimination against gay and lesbians, was often justified by religion, correct?
A – Yes.

The AFER Case to Overturn Prop. 8

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