As a child of the turbulent sixties, I was convinced time promised a better tomorrow. Through assassinations and a bloody war, bold Americans learned to speak up for their beliefs and work for what was right. There was a sense that - yes, change was tough, but we'll evolve through our difficulty towards a brighter tomorrow. These were the days of the Mustang and Joplin - of a country on fire, looking for healing and freedom from repression and ignorance.
Clela Rorex is hardly a household name, but her determination to do her job responsibly put her at the flash point social change. In Boulder Co, on March 26, 1975, Clela issued the first same-sex marriage licenses in the United States. Her motivation was clear - open up society for all pledged couples because it was the right thing to do.
In the ensuing thirty-five years, America is only worse for her exclusion of gay countrymen from marriage equality. Zealots and lunatics have bred repression and prejudice. America's leaders are influencing a new generation of children to hate for God and country. Today's progressive heroes divide their time between fighting for social change and helping our children survive hate in the schoolyard.
Clela Rorex had courage when she was called upon. Americans must have the guts to open their hearts - or it will be our own outrageous stupidity, rather than God's wrath that will doom us all.