Same Sex Marriage - Proposition 8 in California

The following comment was posted by RP in response to the federal court decision in California invalidating Proposition 8 which defined marriage as between a man and woman only.

"The Equal Protection Clause, part of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, provides that "no state shall … deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws"

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Boarding a plane isn't a constitutional right, neither is employment, but to deny people those things based on race or sexuality is an infringement on the individuals civil rights and fundamental freedom it is contrary to The Equal Protection Clause, of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
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The Supreme Court of the United States ruled the following in its decision, ending laws which banned marriage between "whites" and "colors" in the case:
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Loving v. Virginia- "Marriage is one of the "basic civil rights of man," fundamental to our very existence and survival…. To deny this fundamental freedom on so unsupportable a basis as the racial classifications embodied in these statutes, classifications so directly subversive of the principle of equality at the heart of the Fourteenth Amendment."

Why is it so important to call it marriage?"
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Because the same but different isn't equal. Just as taps for blacks and taps for whites where not equal neither is a civil union equal to marriage. Marriage is a social union or legal contract between individuals that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged by a variety of ways, depending on the culture or demographic. It is not owned by your church it predates them all.
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"decide on an issue not expressly included in the Constitution?
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You seem to have confused the role of the constitution in this, no one is arguing that marriage is a constitutional right rather that there is a constitutional right to equal access to and protections of the law for what is a basic civil right and fundamental freedom. If the law recognizes marriage of straight couples it MUST recognize the marriage of same sex couples!
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If your confusion lies in the belief that the church owns marriage, that is not the case the US government or State government thereof provides both the license to get married and the marriage certificate which forms the official record of such.

The Equal Protection Clause, part of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, provides that "no state shall … deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws"
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The Equal Protection Clause can be seen as an attempt to secure the promise of the United States' professed commitment to the proposition that "all men are created equal. It makes no exception for gay people or bi people or transgender people rather it says ALL PEOPLE are to be treated equal giving the same protections of the law!
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The California Constitution itself sets out two ways to alter the document that sets the most basic rules about how state government works. Proposition 8 was put on the ballot through the initiative process. But any measure that would change the underlying principles of the constitution must first be approved by the legislature before being submitted to the voters. That didn't happen with Proposition 8, and that's why it's invalid.
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If the voters approved an initiative that took the right to free speech away from women, but not from men, everyone would agree that such a measure conflicts with the basic ideals of equality enshrined in our constitution. Proposition 8 suffers from the same flaw – it removes a protected constitutional right."

I think his points are sound and valid.