The legislatures of states are deeply involved in the public debate on how to define marriage, and argue whether marriage’s legal definition should be extended to same-gender couples. Currently, seventeen states and the District of Columbia have laws allowing same-sex marriage. Same-sex marriage is prohibited in thirty-three states, and twenty-nine states outlaw same-gender unions in their state constitutions. The effects of special interest group lobbying for and against same-sex marriage legalization impact local and state governments, as well as states’ constitutions.
Special interest groups such as Freedom to Marry, Human Rights Campaign, and Equality Virginia, monitors state proposed legislation, and advocates within states on behalf of states’ gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community. Gay advocacy interest groups argue for same-gender couples to have “access to the same marriage benefits and legal protections that heterosexual couples enjoy, and insist laws prohibiting gay marriage are unconstitutional”; further proclaiming “Gay marriage is protected by t...
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”).
Abstract On June 26, 2015 a divided Supreme Court ruled in the landmark case Obergefell v. Hodges that same-sex couples could now marry nationwide. At the time of the split ruling there were 9 supreme court justices, 5 of the justices were Republicans, and the remaining 4 were Democrats. In high profile cases it is except that the justices will vote along party lines. When the 5-4 ruling was reveled by the following statement. “It would misunderstand these men and women to say they disrespect the idea of marriage. Their plea is that they do respect it, respect it so deeply that they seek to find its fulfillment for themselves. Their hope is not to be condemned to live in loneliness, excluded from one of civilization’s oldest institutions. They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right (Corn,2015).” written by
In Obergefell v. Hodges (2015), the court determined gay marriage to be a constitutional right, striking down several dozen state laws against SSM. While there has been some residual pushback against this decision, overall there has been broad complacence due to a high level of public support for the decision. Little scholarship has been done on how this decision has been implemented because the discussion was made so recently, but some measures show that “99.87 percent of the U.S. population [lives] in a county where same-sex marriage licenses are available” ("Local Government Responses to Obergefell v. Hodges." n.d.). While there are some pockets of resistance it is clear that there is broad local compliance with this decision, likely because of its broad popularity. Instances in which local bodies choose to disregard the Obergefell decision are highly publicized, and generally receive a great deal of public criticism. Thus, the SSM marriage example has fulfilled the two conditions for successful policy, as interest groups were able to use the courts to accomplish a set of aims, and local support has allowed for the implementation of the policy. While there has been some pushback along the way, this pushback has only served to further raise awareness of issue in the minds of the American people, and helped this cause gain
"You robbed me of something very precious and I will never forgive you for that. Mr. McKinney, I give you life in the memory of one who no longer lives. May you have a long life and may you thank Matthew every day for it." Those were the words said by Dennis Shepard at the sentencing of Aaron McKinney, one of the men who tortured, robbed, and murdered his son Matthew Shepard. He was given a life sentence. States must inflict a harsher punishment for people who commit gay violence crimes because over the years hate crimes based on sexual orientation have become the third highest category reported.
“Do you know what the Gays did to me now? They took away my right to vote!”
Explaining how to challenge the discriminatory attitudes that remain rampant throughout the world, Mary Robinson, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, in a recent article, quotes the incisive words of Archbishop Desmond Tutu: "We are all of equal worth, born equal in dignity and born free and for this reason deserving respect. . . . We belong in a world whose very structure, whose essence, is diversity almost bewildering in extent, and it is to live in a fool's paradise to ignore this basic fact."
The 1960s and 1970s saw a spur of social unrest and resistance against societal status quo. The time period served as a pivot point in the progression of societal norms. For once people were speaking up to be themselves and act on their prerogative. From the movement of women pushing for liberal ideals of self-expression to the gay rights movement in which homosexuals advocated to create tolerance of their lifestyle. Furthermore, their avocation may have been met with resistance and opposition, but changed the American society forever.
basic civil rights protections for GLBT people.” (Currah, Minter p.9) Many of the LGBT population feel like their personal freedoms and liberties have been violated as lawmakers in some states and countries infringe on their personal rights. Passings of legislature that marginalizes the LGBT population is not only unjust and inhumane but it causes sociological and societal implications that question that persons beliefs about themselves leading to the dangerous climate facing the group from within themselves and the population around
Sixty years from now, the American people will look back on the 21st century and be appalled at how the people from today allowed their government to make it illegal for certain couples to get married, just as the people of today are disgusted with the ban on marriage between interracial couples before 1967. Being so advanced technologically, it is surprising how America is still so behind on the issue of same-sex marriage. The United States should push aside the religious argument in this debate, and truly separate its church and state as it claims to do so. From its slow beginning to the rapid increase of support in the 70’s, homosexual marriage has been a controversial debate that hopefully will end in the near future.
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.
As a United States citizen who was born in the new millennium, I was brought up with the idea that, as stated in the Declaration of Independence, “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” This statement was one of the main sources of fuel for the Civil Rights Movements in the mid 1950’s/60’s in the United States. Minority groups have often been mistreated in the United States culminating in movements much like that of the women’s suffrage movement, civil rights movements and now a movement toward equality for the LGBTQIA. In the last few decades a new minority group, lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgender, queer/questioning, intersex and allies, and their struggle to attain their right to the pursuit of happiness. This small makes up roughly 4 percent of the US population. Though many say that gay marriage will weaken the moral foundation of our country, it should be legalized, not only because banning it is unconstitutional, but also because strips people of their human rights
Hate Crimes: crimes motivated by a victim’s actual or perceived gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or religion(Federal officials, 2011). Hate crimes have been around for centuries. A hate crime is considered any malicious crime that is derived from hatred towards a certain group of people. African Americans are still victim to hate crimes, even after the Civil Rights movement. James Byrd Jr. suffered a prime example of a gruesome hate crime in 1998, because of his African American descent. Three white men, allegedly, chained Byrd to the back of a pickup truck and dragged him down a gravel road, leaving his body parts severed and bloody (Marty,1998). Recently, a new group of people has been targeted by the hateful view of society: Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, and Transgendered (LGBT).
However, despite the growing arguments they are all nothing new to the states. in fact, the first noted case on same sex marriage was brought to the supreme court in 1972. The dream for everyone’s equality, including same sex couples, has been an issue within America for many years. Unfortunately, matters like this aren’t restricted by a time frame. In the year of 2013 the Department of Defense began allowing same-sex couples to apply for marriage identification cards. As each state began giving the O.K for these couples, we were also taking steps that were bringing us closer to achieving our dream. Unfortunately not all states feel the same. It was during this time that Texas, Mississippi, and Louisiana refused to process applications. As the arguments continue to drag on The American Dream is becoming harder and harder to achieve. Meanwhile, In Iowa the legalization of same sex marriage was passed and couples rushed to fill out their applications. Unfortunately, like all good things this didn’t last long. “The chance was fleeting. After four hours, Robert B. Hanson, the same county judge who had deemed the ban on same-sex marriages unconstitutional, delayed further granting of licenses until the Iowa Supreme Court decided whether to consider an appeal. [...] Here, the brief flurry of applications for marriage licenses was low key. About 20 couples applied before a
If the constitution promises equality before the law, what justification can there be for clearing rights to any member of society? More specifically what justification can there be for clearing rights to gays and lesbians? Lots of questions come to mind when the topic of gays and lesbians having equal rights as any other citizen in society would have. Should gays and lesbians have equal employment opportunities? Should they have the right to adopt a child, and should they have the right to marry their own sex partner. Well of course they should have the right to do all of these things just because they are human beings also.
When one hears the words “LGBT” and “Homosexuality” it often conjures up a mental picture of people fighting for their rights, which were unjustly taken away or even the social emergence of gay culture in the world in the1980s and the discovery of AIDS. However, many people do not know that the history of LGBT people stretches as far back in humanity’s history, and continues in this day and age. Nevertheless, the LGBT community today faces much discrimination and adversity. Many think the problem lies within society itself, and often enough that may be the case. Society holds preconceptions and prejudice of the LGBT community, though not always due to actual hatred of the LGBT community, but rather through lack of knowledge and poor media portrayal.