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debate on gay marriage paper
why same sex marriage shouldnt be legalized
issue of gay marriages
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Legalization of Gay Marriage in Virginia
For many years now the topic of Gay marriage has been a colossal topic of discussion throughout the United States. Questions such as “ Is it immoral? Or is it Moral “ emerge in these discussions quite often. But, the biggest question is whether it should be legalized or not. Although, the question of “ should it be legalized” is a very important question, the question of “ why is gay marriage illegal” rarely comes up. Which is a very interesting question that most people never stop to think about.
Gay marriage is currently legal in 17 states and banned in 33 states, with some states pending in legalization. ["17 States with Legal Gay Marriage and 33 States with Same-Sex Marriage Bans - Gay Marriage - ProCon.org."] When asked why gay marriage is illegal you hear many different answers based on ones own opinion. But, with these opinions based answers you often find that people contradict themselves and are biased. For example answers such as ,”Because it goes against the bible,” often comes up as an answer against. But, if that answer were to be true there wouldn’t be the law of Separation of Church and state. Also, answers such, as “It’s immoral and just wrong” appear, but they fail to realize what may seem wrong to them may seem right to someone else. So therefore that alone can’t make something illegal. As said before there are numerous responses to the question of why gay marriage is illegal, but rarely do you hear the right answer.
In 1996 on September 21 the United States federal law enacted The Defense of Marriage Act; otherwise known as DOMA. DOMA is a federal law that allows states to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages granted under the laws of other st...
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...6. Nussbaum, Martha. "A Right to Marry? Same-sex Marriage and Constitutional Law | Dissent Magazine." Dissent Magazine. Dissent, 2013. Web. 08 Apr. 2014. .
7. "17 States with Legal Gay Marriage and 33 States with Same-Sex Marriage Bans - Gay Marriage - ProCon.org." ProConorg Headlines. ProCon, 24 Mar. 2014. Web. 06 Apr. 2014. .
8. . "Report: Legal Gay Marriage Could Boost Va. Economy." NBC4 Washington. N.p., 22 Apr. 2014. Web. 25 Apr. 2014. .
9. Vozzella, Laura. "Va. Republicans Ready to Defend Same-sex Marriage Ban." Washington Post. The Washington Post, 24 Jan. 2014. Web. 25 Apr. 2014.
Throughout the recent history of America, gay marriage has always been an issue. With the different views and morals everyone has on the subject, it makes it hard for individual states to determine what side they should be on. In 1983 a Harvard Law School student, Evan Wolfson, wrote a thesis stating the rule of marriage equality. Justices concluded that gay couples were entitled to the legal benefits of civil marriage; and most crucially in the Supreme Judicial Court in Massachusetts, whose favorable ruling, in a suit by lawyer Mary Bonauto and the Boston-based Gay and Lesbian Advocated and Defenders, led to the nation’s first bona fide same-sex marriages…” (“Gay Marriage turns 10 and Credit Should Be Spread around- The Boston Globe). On May 17, 2004 Massachusetts became the first state to legalize gay marriages. In June of 2013, California legalized gay marriages, which helped their large LGBT (Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered) community. (“History and Timeline of the Freedom…”). When this finally happened, it was seen as a great achievement by Karmala Harris, a California Attorney. “This is a profound day in our country, and its just the right thing: ‘Justice is finally being served’” (“Court Gives OK for California Gay Marriages”).
Allowing homosexual couples to get married will bring in more marriages and a bigger amount of money to the economy. A big part of getting married is the financial aspect of it. "Marriage ceremonies entail a significant expense, and it was estimated by the Comptroller of New York that the added infusion from legalizing same sex couple marriages would add $142 million to the economy. This not only accounts for the profits that businesses will receive if same-sex marriage is allowed, but also for the payments these couples must make to acquire marriage licenses."
The constitutional right of gay marriage is a hot topic for debate in the United States. Currently, 37 states have legal gay marriage, while 13 states have banned gay marriage. The two essays, "What’s Wrong with Gay Marriage?" by Katha Pollitt and "Gay "Marriage": Societal Suicide" by Charles Colson provide a compare and contrast view of why gay marriage should be legal or not. Pollitt argues that gay marriage is a constitutional human right and that it should be legal, while Colson believes that gay marriage is sacrilegious act that should not be legal in the United States and that “it provides a backdrop for broken families and increases crime rates” (Colson, pg535). Both authors provide examples to support their thesis. Katha Pollitt provides more relevant data to support that gay marriage is a constitutional right and should be enacted as law in our entire country, she has a true libertarian mindset.
Washington Post. Survey of 1,002 Adults Concerning Gay Marriage. New York: 27 Feb.-2 Mar. 2014. Web. 9 Mar. 2014.
...r any religious book into the government’s laws. DOMA could be seen as a religious act to prohibit homosexuals the right to marry. Who can think of any reason besides religion why two men can’t get married? Then again, maybe there is an answer of why they can’t get married and why DOMA hasn’t come down under separation of church and state. Growing up each child has a different relationship with their parents. The mother, no matter how feminine or not, nurtures their child and cares deeply for them. The Dad, no matter how masculine or not, fights to protect their child from the nasty people in the world. Without either role a child could become more hardened, with no one to nurture or no one to protect them. People are entitled to their opinions and however one feels will determine if the impact of DOMA and what has since happened is a great one or a horrible one.
Associated Press, . "New York Becomes the Sixth State to Legalize Gay Marriage." (2011): 4.
On 2013-JUN-26, Section 3 of that act was declared unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in a famous lawsuit Windsor v. United States. Overnight, legally married same-sex couples whose marriages were recognized where they lived suddenly were recognized by the federal government. They gained access to 1,138 federal programs, benefits, and protections that had previously been denied them. Perhaps of even greater importance, the majority ruling in Windsor contained arguments that other federal courts and state courts could use to justify the legalization of marriage equality. Within months, there were lawsuits seeking marriage equality in every state where gay marriages were
Miscegenation: Noun; Marriage, cohabitation, or sexual relations between two members of two separate races. Most commonly used in reference to relations between African Americans and Caucasian Americans (blacks and whites.) In 1960’s nearly 4 out of every 225 marriages was interracial. This was frowned upon in the early to mid 1900’s and this is what two people, Mildred Jeter and Richard Loving had to face. Racial indifference or a racial supremacy has been an issue in America as long as it has existed. It began with the Native Americans on this soil we thrive on today. The whites of the time pushed the Natives of what land they could and fooled them off of the rest of it. They took their children, and tried to conform them into a race they were not, and never would be. From there on, our nation grew larger and more independent. In 1619, 127 years after North America had been discovered, a Dutch man traded his cargo of Africans for food. This gave our nation its first group of “servants.” The uproar of slavery did not start until the 1680’s as far as the records show.
Barclay, Scott and Shauna Fisher. "The States and the Differing Impetus for Diverging Paths on Same-Sex Marriage." Policy Studies Journal (2003): 3. eLibrary. Web. 27 Sept. 2013.
The ruling of Baehr vs. Lewin was a victory for gay rights activists, hope for other states searching for the same freedom, and disappointment for opponents of same-sex marriage. Yet this victory was short lived (until complete legalization in November 13, 2013) since the state appealed the lower court’s decis...
Why isn’t gay marriage legal yet? How does gay marriage affect people that aren’t gay? Why does it matter to those people? Why can’t gay people have the same rights as straight people? Gay marriage should be legal worldwide. Gay marriage or same-sex marriage is when a man and man or women and a woman get married. Same-sex marriage impacts society in different types of ways, some people are affected by it because they think it is against the bible, others seem to have no impact or problem with same-sex marriage. However for the gay community it affects them, because in some states they are not allowed to marry the one they are in love with it. Also it impacts them because there are groups of people against same-sex marriage and the gay community is constantly being judged by people opposed to same-sex marriage. Seventeen states have legalized same-sex marriage; Thirty-three states banned same-sex marriage. Same-sex marriage provides a more stable environment for children of gay couples. Legalizing same-sex marriage does not affect or harm heterosexual marriages. Marriage is a union of love, not a union of genders.
Over the last years the topic of same-sex marriage has been of great importance to our society. The idea of the same gender being lawfully married is disturbing to a group of people but in the recent years the number of supporters has increased. The cases that argue for the legalization of same-sex marriage are focusing on the relationship of the individuals and do not see anything in same-sex marriage that could harm our society as a whole. The article “How the President go to ‘I Do’ on Same-Sex Marriage,” published by Joe Becker in April 2014, explains how Barack Obama started saying that he was undecided about the subject matter but is now leaning toward the legalization of same-sex marriage. The subject matter takes a lot of analyzing of what pros and cons are to come from the legalization of same-sex marriage. Same-sex marriage is a global argument that deals with unifying two individuals of the same gender under the law. The main reason that supporters give for justifying same-sex marriage is that it is for the same reason as straight people, to show love and commitment to each other. Furthermore, the argument of same-sex marriage is difficult to generalize because of the multiple factors that need to be taken in consideration when making any decision regarding this topic. Although Becker does have true premises, he lacks clarity in his terms which make his argument be false and invalid.
There are many opponents of gay people as it is, and they all have their reasons to dislike the idea of permitting them get married. One of the main reasons is that the primary purpose of marriage is procreation. Because gay couples are unable to have children, they should not be allowed to marry (Schiffen 495). Another main argument is that the word marriage means the union of one man and one woman. This is a long-standing theme of most major Western religions. Under a proposed bill known as the Defense of Marriage act, marriage is defined as “a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife.” Furthermore, it defines a spouse as “ a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or wife” (What 1). Under these guidelines, it is quite obvious that gay couples would not be eligible for marriage. People against homosexual marriage also say that it is a person’s choice to be gay. Since the individual chooses to be a homosexual, they should not be given special privileges. Another argument that you hear is that these couples should not get married simply because of the torment and ridicule they would be faced with in their everyday lives. There are news reports from across America telling about how a gay person was beaten or killed just because they were looked at as different. Some of these people would end up the target of verbal abuse and maybe even physical abuse, just because some heterosexual people see them as different.
In conclusion I argue that banning same-sex marriage is discriminatory. It is discriminatory because it denies homosexuals the many benefits received by heterosexual couples. The right to marriage in the United States has little to do with the religious and spiritual meaning of marriage. It has a lot to do with social justice, extending a civil right to a minority group. This is why I argue for same-sex marriage. The freedom to marry regardless of gender preference should be allowed.
Denying people to get married is a form of discrimination. People are being treated differently because of their sexual orientation and it is morally wrong. Gay marriage has no effect on heterosexuals. So why are so many heterosexuals against it? The arguments against gay marriage are unreasonable. Some believe that being gay is unnatural or influences children to be gay. Studies show that there is no difference between children raised by same sex or straight couples.