With the nation reeling from the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, Time magazine created a stir when it considered naming al-Qaeda mastermind Osama bin Laden its Person of the Year.

Americans recoiled and lashed out at the magazine. The monumental losses suffered on Sept. 11 were fresh in their minds. One poll showed 84 percent of respondents said bin Laden shouldn’t have been nominated, let alone seriously considered for Person of the Year. The honor – which, in fact, isn’t intended to honor the recipient at all – would be misinterpreted, said some. It was an insult and un-American of editors to consider bin Laden for the magazine’s annual special issue, said others.

Ultimately, Time honored New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani for his leadership in the wake of the attacks, but the nomination of bin Laden underscored the newsmagazine’s criteria for its Person of the Year. For better or worse, Time honors the year’s biggest newsmaker; an individual, a group or an invention that has the greatest impact or influence during the year.

Adolf Hitler was Person of the Year in 1938. Joseph Stalin received the nod twice, first in 1939 and again in 1942. While history may not look kindly on Hitler or Stalin, the men’s global influence tells an important story.

In the spirit of Time magazine’s Person of the Year, the Gay & Lesbian Times has honored a person – or people – each year who had a significant impact in the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community.

In 2005, deputy mayor Toni Atkins was named Person of the Year for increasing the community’s visibility at City Hall, and displaying leadership during a critical time in the city’s history.

In 2006, Mayor Jerry Sanders and Police Chief William Lansdowne were honored as People of the Year for their quick and decisive response to the attack on six men outside the San Diego Pride festival.

In 2007, Sanders was Person of the Year again for leading with his heart and supporting the city’s amicus brief in the marriage cases before the California Supreme Court.

We’ve yet to see in 2008 a single leader or group that has had more of an impact on our community – our lives and yours – than the leaders of the Yes on 8 campaign.

As is the case with Time’s annual nod, ours is an assessment of the year’s newsmakers; the person or people who exercised the greatest impact on you and me.

The Yes on 8 campaign relied on tried and true campaign tactics – faith, fear and falsehoods – to mobilize a slim majority of the state’s voters to pass Proposition 8 and ban same-sex marriage in California.

In victory, they’ve defined – constitutionally, at least – our right to marry. The impact extends beyond our city, our region and our state. The nationwide movement looked to California’s voters to reject Proposition 8; the marriage ban’s defeat would have given new momentum to the fight for equal rights in states throughout our great nation. Instead, we were dealt a crippling loss.

The silver lining: the Yes on 8 campaign’s efforts to ban same-sex marriage have galvanized the community in a way that has mobilized a new generation of activists. Being constitutionally stripped of our fundamental rights (at the hands of the Yes campaign’s leaders, volunteers and donors) has forced us to reassess our priorities.

While time may prove those who supported Proposition 8 stood on the wrong side of history and progress, there is no denying their immediate impact on the lives of gay and lesbian couples in California and America. They’ve inspired – through the anger, hurt and frustration felt in Proposition 8’s aftermath – young members of this community to take responsibility for its future; and they’ve set the stage for a new battle.

Ideologically we may not subscribe to the same set of “family values” or the notion of “tradition” as the Yes campaign’s leaders, donors or supporters – but we must recognize their influence, if only for the purpose of knowing the enemy.