I would like to applaud our governor for standing up for the minority and supporting the overturning of Proposition 8. It was a very sad day in California history when 52 percent of people in this state voted to ban the rights of the minority.

The supporters of Prop. 8 spent a lot of time and money on statements like "Prop. 8 would take away religious freedoms," "Prop. 8 would take away parental rights," "Prop. 8 would allow the schools to teach about gay marriage." Not one of these statements is correct.

The churches make their own rules about who can marry in their faith, not the state. The passing of Prop. 8 took away my parental rights and many other parents like me.

I am a straight mother who can no longer give my child the proper wedding that she deserves just like everyone else's child.

As for the schools, my daughter grew up in the California school system, and I have worked in a California school for 17 years— marriage is not a subject in any of the schools that I have been affiliated with.

Our schools are struggling to teach our children reading, writing and arithmetic; they aren't worried about who's marrying who.

Also, whatever happened to separation of church and state? I know that it was put into place to protect the churches, but it has to work both ways. We have to protect our state from allowing the churches to run over the minorities in our state.

When do we get to become a united people and stop separating out those that look or act differently than us?

I for one will continue to live by God's rule: Love thy neighbor as I love myself. Patti Martin Simi Valley