The story behind this tape:
I was working in the newsroom of Sacramento’s FOX affiliate on November 5, 2008 when this piece of videotape came in. The tape shows two men being married at the Sacramento county clerk’s office, only to have their ceremony interrupted by the county clerk who said that, due to the overwhelming number of votes in support of Proposition 8, the county was suspending marriages for same sex couples.
After watching this video on a tape deck in our newsroom, I decided to publish it to our website unedited. Four years later, it’s still there. It’s one of those rare pieces of videotape that tells the story without narration or commentary.
I figured it was worth sharing again today.
The silent embrace before the interview is just … so heavy.
“Eh, he is a pissant,” the man said, proceeding to spew about how an “illegal alien” killed the son of a friend down in L.A., and how it was Villaraigosa’s fault. “He is a Mexican. That is what he claims. He is always defending illegal Mexicans and Mexico. … I have no qualms about saying anything to him.”
The fellow’s name is Davi Rodrigues. From where? “Right here in Sac,” he said. “I’m an American. Period.”
By the way, it’s worth noting that Villaraigosa (who’s been mayor of the second-largest city in the country since 2005) is a born-and-raised American citizen. Just like Mr. Rodrigues.
Amusement park ride collapses near Sacramento: At the Scandia Fun Center amusement park near Citrus Heights, Calif., a ride called the “Scandia Screamer” collapsed. At least one has been reported injured. To give you an idea of what this fairly popular ride is usually like, check this YouTube video out. (src ProducerMatthew)
Southwest Airlines has grounded 81 passenger aircraft after an incident aboard a Boeing 737 plane Friday afternoon.
Southwest says the 81 Boeing 737 jets will be examined over the next few days for “aircraft skin fatigue,” which is thought to have caused a hole in the fuselage of a plane bound for Sacramento from San Francisco.
The plane made an emergency landing in Yuma, Arizona. More than 110 passengers were transported to Sacramento from Yuma a short time later.
New video: A passenger on-board Southwest Airlines flight 812 filmed what appeared to be a three-foot hole in the roof of the Boeing 737. The plane, en route to Sacramento from Phoenix, landed safely in Yuma, Arizona. A new plane is expected to take the 112 passengers to Sacramento later tonight.
Plane going down. Love you.Text message sent to a Sacramento woman by her husband on-board a troubled Southwest Airlines plane. The Sacramento-bound plane landed safely a few minutes later in Yuma, Arizona. An eyewitness said a loud bang was heard in the cabin, which caused rapid decompression in the plane. A total of 118 passengers were on-board the plane. A separate flight will take them to Sacramento around 8:30pm Friday. (via producermatthew)
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