Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio
Villaraigosa has described marrying a gay couple involved in the
Proposition 8 case as a “proud moment.”
Villaraigosa, a longtime supporter of
gay rights, officiated over the Los Angeles City Hall wedding of Paul
Katami and Jeff Zarrillo. The wedding took place just hours after an
appeals court lifted its stay on a lower court's ruling declaring
Proposition 8 to be unconstitutional. Approval of Proposition 8 in
2008 put an end to the weddings of gay couples taking place in the
state as a result of a California Supreme Court ruling legalizing
such unions.
(Related: Video
includes behind-the-scenes footage of Prop 8 plaintiffs' weddings.)
“Was it a kick to do it?” Larry
King asked Villaraigosa during an appearance on his new RT show
Politicking with Larry King.
“It was a pinch to cheek moment in
some ways, there's no question about it,” Villaraigosa answered.
“I knew the couple who were 2 of the 4 plaintiffs. And very close
to [HRC President] Chad Griffin, who is the guy we both know kinda
pushed this case all along with Rob Reiner and others. It was a
proud moment to be able to marry those two.”
Villaraigosa added that he also married
a gay couple who knocked on his door.
“They said, 'You gotta marry me, you
gotta marry me.' I said, 'Who are you?' And they said, 'We're your
neighbors.' So I married them on Saturday before I couldn't marry
people any more,” Villaraigosa said. (The video is embedded on
this page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)