Legalization of Gay Marriage

 

Everyone has the right to be married

America has always been highly credited as the “melting pot” for having a plethora of different people, races and cultures. The American culture is seen by many other countries and people as the most accepting and racially diverse. For a nation that is portrayed as “a new beginning” and accepting, then why is it illegal in many states that same sex couples can't get married? Same sex marriage has been a hot controversial topic in America for over half a century. Year after year, more and more laws are being passed to legalize same sex marriage all across the United States. Slowly but surely, more states are creating laws that either make same sex marriage, domestic partnerships or civil unions legal or the banning of same sex marriage is unconstitutional. As of today, the road to the legalization of same sex marriage has come a long way but still has much work to do. Brendon Ayanbadejo, a writer at the Huffington Post, wrote an article called Same Sex Marriages: What's the Big Deal?, where he stated “looking at the former restrictions on human rights in our country starting with slavery, women not being able to vote, blacks being counted as two thirds of a human, segregation, no gays in the military all have gone by the wayside”(Ayanbadejo). From abolishing these laws, America has grown only positively. Therefore, if same sex marriage is made legal all across The United States, there would only be positive outcomes. 

Cartoon "Defending the Sanctity of Marriage"

Even though the topic of gay marriage started in the sixties, it wasn’t as hot of a topic until 1993 and still continues to be till this very day. In the 1960’s, people simply wanted to have a legal relation with their same sex partner, whether that is marriage or just a civil union. It wasn’t until 1993 that the road to legalization of same sex marriage had begun. The spark that started the fire was when the state of Hawaii passed a law in the year of 1993 that said, “the state's Supreme Court ruled that an existing law banning same-sex marriage would be unconstitutional unless the state government could show that it had a compelling reason for discriminating against gay and lesbian couples”( Masci).  After this law was passed, there were many people that were overjoyed and others that were outraged. For years, many people believed marriage was a union only between a man and a women and the idea of same sex marriage was a disgrace to the sanctity of marriage. After this law was passed, three years later another law was passed. After the ruling of the law in Hawaii, the Defense of Marriage Act was passed. This law was described as “prevented homosexual couples from receiving benefits traditionally conferred by marriage” (Masci). Shortly after this, states thought of their own laws to have domestic partnerships and civil unions in attempt to get around this law. Then a few years later another law was passed that completely changed America’s view of same sex marriage. In 2003, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that the state must allow same sex couples to marry. After this law was passed, America would never be the same. Not only did this law pave the way for many other states to make the banning of same sex marriage unconstitutional, but it also started a riot that is still happening to this day. Same sex couples and many fellow Americans rejoiced as now they could legally get married but on the other hand, many other Americans were outraged. People that are heavily religious or simply can’t accept the fact that same sex marriage can be right were the main types of protestors. People that are committed members of the Catholic Church or any Christian church in general, are usually targeted for being the main people against same sex marriage. I would have to disagree with this fact because I myself am Roman Catholic and I'm in full support of the Gay Rights movement.I was raised Catholic and still am till this day and I believe in God and Gay Marriage. I believe that everyone has the right to be married no matter if it is heterosexual or homosexual. To put it simply, love is love no matter what sexes are involved. Also, many of my friends and family members are also Catholic and believe that everyone has the right to be married. Those against gay marriage protested that same sex marriage was wrong and a disgrace to the sanctity of marriage. As a rebuttal, those in support of same sex marriage proved that over 50% of marriages end in divorce.  Also another point was that many people divorce and remarry or get “Vegas” weddings and weren’t even questioned as disgracing the sanctity of marriage. But people who have been in a committed relationship for years are unable to legally get married due to the fact that they are the same sex.  

Neil Patrick Harris and husband David Burtka with their twins

Many iconic figures in today’s society fully support gay rights. From singer Lady Gaga to talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, they are in complete support of gay rights and the legalization of gay marriage. Actor Neil Patrick Harris is a prime example for this. Neil Patrick Harris is known most for his role on the hit television show How I met Your Mother. In the show, Harris plays Barney, a straight, happy-go-lucky ladies man, which is far from who he is in real life. Off screen, Neil Patrick Harris is a happy-go-lucky family man who is gay and is an activist for gay rights and same sex marriage. This past year, Harris married his longtime partner David Burtka, who he’s been engaged to for over six years. The two were waiting until it was legal in their home state of New York to finally tie the knot. Also this past year, the couple had a set of twins from a surrogate mother. After having the twins, many people asked them, how can two men can raise a family? This question has always been a hot topic in gay rights because many believe that a child needs both a mother and father figure in their development to succeed in life. Many people believed this was true until Zach Wahls. Wahls is a nineteen year old man who attends the University of Iowa and was raised by two mothers. He spoke in a court room opposing “a House Joint Resolution that would ban same-sex marriage and civil unions” (Cohen). Wahls addressed the court room and spoke eloquently of how he was raised by two moms and turned out just fine.  He stated very proudly and powerfully, “I scored in the 99th percentile on the ACT. I’m actually an Eagle Scout. I own and operate my own small business. If I was your son, Mr. Chairman, I believe I’d make you very proud”(Wahls). His speech was recorded on a video camera and the video was entitled "Two Lesbians Raised a Baby and This is What They Got" went viral onto YouTube and has been viewed by millions of people since it was uploaded. There has been much research and many books written about the effects of a child being raised by two same sex parents. So far, there has been no substantial proof that being raised by two same sexed parents will have a negative affect on the childs life. According to a 1995 National Health and Social Life Survey by E.O. Laumen , she discovered that almost 9 million children in The United States of America have same sex parents. Also, many other sources say that children that are raised by same sex parents are better off. What they mean by better off is that they will be more open to different cultures, races and experiences due to their life style from their parents more than children raised by a heterosexual couple.

If Gay Marriage is made legal

Same sex marriage and gay rights in general have been a controversial topic in America since the 1960’s. Every day more and more people are in support of gay rights and marriage rather than oppose it. No person can decide who can marry and who can’t. Marriage is a human right , whether you marry the opposite or same sex shouldn’t matter.  Love is love, no matter if it is heterosexual or same sex.  According to Virginia law, “these types of marriages are “abominable.” If allowed, they would “pollute” America.” If same sex marriage would become legal, would World War III start? Will the terrorists win? Or will we be cursed with various plagues? No, the only thing that will come of legalization of same sex marriage is that same sex couples would get married. 

Printed Works Citied

"Why Gay Parents May Be the Best Parents." Science News – Science Articles and Current Events. Web. 20 Feb. 2012. <http://www.livescience.com/17913-advantages-gay-parents.html>.

"An Overview of the Same-Sex Marriage Debate." Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. Web. 20 Feb. 2012. <http://www.pewforum.org/Gay-Marriage-and-Homosexuality/An-Overview-of-the-Same-Sex-Marriage-Debate.aspx>.

Neroulias, Nicole. "Washington State's Governor Signs Gay Marriage Law." Reuters. Thomson Reuters, 13 Feb. 2012. Web. 20 Feb. 2012. <http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/02/13/us-gaymarriage-washington-idUSTRE81C15L20120213>.

DEPARTMENT. "A Brief History Of: Gay Marriage." Time. Time, 22 May 2008. Web. 20 Feb. 2012. <http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1808617,00.html>.

Cohen, Shawna. "‘Two Lesbians Raised A Baby And This Is What They Got’ Video Goes Viral." Mommyish. Web. 20 Feb. 2012. <http://mommyish.com/stuff/two-lesbians-raised-a-baby-and-this-is-what-they-got-goes-viral-video-zach-wahls-801/>.

Ayanbadejo, Brendon. "Same Sex Marriages: What's the Big Deal?" The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 25 May 2011. Web. 20 Feb. 2012. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/brendon-ayanbadejo/same-sex-marriages-whats_b_190591.html>.

"Marriage Equality USA." Historical Look. Web. 20 Feb. 2012. <http://www.marriageequality.org/historical-look>.

Ghavami, Negin, and Kerri L. Johnson. "Comparing Sexual and Ethnic Minority Perspectives on Same-Sex Marriag." Http://journals.ohiolink.edu. Web. 20 Feb. 2012. <http://journals.ohiolink.edu/ejc/article.cgi?issn=00224537&issue=v67i0002&article=394_csaemposm>.

Kris. "Some Thoughts on Gay Marriage." Datingish. 9 Aug. 2010. Web. 20 Feb. 2012. <http://www.datingish.com/731368606/some-thoughts-on-gay-marriage/>.