Assemblymember John Pérez Speaks in Bill Smith Memorial Lecture

Assemblymember John Pérez, chair of the Assembly Democratic Caucus and the first openly gay person of color in the California legislature, spoke at King Hall on April 15 in the 2009 Bill Smith Memorial Lecture.  Pérez addressed the history of gay and lesbian politicians in California, the ongoing controversy over same-sex marriage, and the need for "coalition politics" in order to advance LGBT rights in the state.

Pérez, who represents California's 46th district in the eastern part of Los Angeles, praised the work of trailblazers such as former Assemblymember and State Senator Sheila Kuehl, who became the first openly gay person elected to the California legislature when she won her Assembly seat in 1994.  He spoke of his own entry into politics, the ways in which his identity as a gay man and as a Latino were perceived by voters, and how this led him to a deeper understanding of coalition politics and the need to form alliances between communities.

Much of Pérez's lecture focused on Proposition 8, the same-sex marriage ban passed by voters in November, which Pérez said was "imminently defeat-able" yet passed in part as the result of "political malpractice" on the part of opposition leaders who "misunderstood the essence of coalition politics."  Pérez said that one key problem was that those worked to defeat Prop. 8 failed to do the necessary outreach in the African American and Latino communities and failed to frame the issue in ways that were persuasive to those voters. 

Pérez said he was "not optimistic" that the California Supreme Court, which is currently reviewing challenges to Prop. 8, would overturn the initiative, and argued against putting the issue before voters again in 2010, stressing the need to first build coalitions and partnerships within communities that have had a history of discrimination.  "We can't make up that ground in two years," said Pérez, "but we can do it in six years, or eight years."

The lecture was well-attended, drawing an audience that included Professors Holly Cooper, Courtney Joslin, Amagda Perez, and Alan Brownstein, as well as Professor Emeritus Cruz Reynoso.

The Bill Smith Memorial Lecture honors the memory of Bill Smith '98, who died in 2001.  While at King Hall, Smith was the president of the Lambda Law Students, won the Martin Luther King, Jr. Service Award, and worked on behalf of LGBT and disability-oriented civil rights.  Upon graduation, he practiced employment and family law.