Homosexuality in America
One of the most controversial topics in modern American society is the legalization of homosexual marriage. The gay community is currently experiencing emotional and physical violence against them based on a difference in cultural choices, similar to what the black community suffered through during the civil rights movement and what women underwent during the women’s suffrage era. Laws against gay marriage are unconstitutional, as most were created because of Christian politicians’ opinions on homosexuality; however, America is not a Christian nation, and homosexuals should not be banned from marriage based on the beliefs of certain religions. As a country founded on freedom of cultural expression, America should legalize gay marriage.
Homosexuality has several standard arguments against it, and all can be shown to be unjustifiable or invalid. The first of these arguments is that homosexuality is unnatural. The reality is that homosexuality is more natural than marriage itself. Marriage is a societal institution that was created by humanity as a way to bond two humans together in love, thus making it an unnatural concept (Lipp). Homosexuality has been an existing practice in society for ages, with homosexual ideas being mentioned by people such as Plato in the Symposium and Aristophanes in some of his plays (Pickett). Homosexuality exists as naturally as heterosexuality does, it was just not as conveyed as openly in former eras as it is today; marriage itself is the truly unnatural idea.
Another reason why homosexuality is unaccepted is that most religions are against it, arguing that marriage is a “religious institution.” Marriage, however, is not a religious institution. As defined by the Merriam-We...
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...age Equality Apparently Have Nothing To Do With Gay People.” Thinkprogress.org. Thinkprogress, 21 May, 2013. Web. 6 Nov. 2013.
Herek, Dr. Gregory M. “Facts About Homosexuality and Mental Health.” Psychology.ucdavis.edu. University of California, 2012. Web. 5 Nov. 2013.
Lipp, Murray. “The Top 10 Arguments Against Gay Marriage: All Receive Failing Grades!” Huffingtonpost.com. Huffpost Gay Voices, 28 May 2013. Web. 3 Nov. 2013.
Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster. M-W. Web. 3 Nov. 2013.
Messerli, Joe. “Should Same-Sex Marriages be Legalized?” Balancedpolitics.org. Web. 7 Nov. 2013.
Pickett, Brent. “Homosexuality.” Plato.stanford.edu. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 6 Aug. 2002. Web. 1 Nov. 2013.
Procon.org. “Should Gay Marriage Be Legal?” Gaymarriage.procon.org. 21 Oct. 2013. Web. 7 Nov. 2013.
Withoutafather.com “Did you Know?” Withoutafather.com. Web. 8 Nov. 2013.
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.
Zorn, Eric. "The Top Six Arguments against Gay Marriage (and Why They All Fail).” ChicagoTribune.com. Chicago Tribune, 20 May 2012. Web. 4 Mar. 2014.
Throughout the years marriage has drifted from its original meaning, which is described as, "the formal union of a man and a woman, typically recognized by law, by which they become husband and wife," by Oxford Dictionary. Today, marriage can be formed between people of opposite sex, people of the same sex, a man and multiple women, and many more. Many people disagree with forms of marriage other than heterosexual marriage. This is because they go against religious beliefs, as well as alter the true meaning of marriage. People who claim to be "Christians" who are, or support homosexuality, are directly going against God. Marriage is supposed to be a sacred covenant between a man and a woman, therefore, anything other than heterosexual marriage is naturally, morally and religiously wrong.
Mondimore, Francis Mark. A Natural History of Homosexuality. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996.
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.
Johnson, R. (2003). Homosexuality: Nature or Nurture. AllPsych Online. Retrieved March 26, 2014, from http://allpsych.com/journal/homosexuality.
The LGBTQIA community has faced strong opposition from groups falling outside this minority for years, primarily conservative and religious groups. This phenomenon is not particular to the United States, but spans hundreds of countries across the world. Religious leaders in varying religions not only oppose the act of marriage, but often times oppose the actual act of homosexual behavior. Often religious oppositionist will cite religious text, like the Bible as a means of opposing the LGBTQIA lifestyle. One of the most blatant oppositions to homosexual b...
The institution of marriage is typically known as a religious rite. When religious people think of marriage they think of God and the church. Traditionally, people also think of one man and one woman. Same-sex marriage will change this philosophy. Religious leaders across the world agree gay marriage will alter marriage forever. Same-sex marriage and homosexuality are topics religious leaders of the world connect and agree on. A variety of religions, such as Buddhists, Protestants, Catholics, Mormons, Jews, and Muslims, have...
In the United States, over 17 states have legalized same sex marriage. In addition, around 16 countries have been able to legalize gay marriages too. This was an incredible breakthrough since same sex marriages had increased over the years. Individuals have the right to marry and get married to their preferred partners. However, there is still an opposition on gay marriages from many groups around the globe today. The groups feel that same sex marriages should be illegal and that; they are against the law and violate the marriage institution. In addition, they argue that, gay marriages are against the biblic...
Marriage as generally define is the union between one man and one woman. However a recent debate over same-sex marriage has stirred a nationwide debate reverberating in the halls of Congress, at the White House, in dozens of state courtrooms and legislatures, and is also becoming a speech-making topic for election campaigns at both the national and state levels. As the debate for this controversial topic rages on, the American religious community view on the topic remains deeply divided over the matter and over the morality of homosexuality in general. Granting legal marriage right to gays and lesbians would primarily alter the idea of marriage, ignore a child’s right to a mother and father, and expands government control of marriage.
Bidstrup, Scott. "Gay Marriage, The Arguments and the Motives." bidstrup.com. Scott Bidstrup, 2000. Web. 14 Jul 2010. .
The way people ultimately view homosexuality, whether in religion, politics or modern popular culture, is all determined by traditional or changing points of view. This essay will discuss mainly liberal and conservative Christian interpretations of the Bible, including many verses that may support or condemn homosexuality. It will also discuss the political views and laws against same-sex marriage and the social activism in the homosexual community. This is all about view points and it has many conflicting views and arguments.
In the United States, legalization of same-sex marriage has a long-standing history of opposition from religious circles. Some argue against the legalization of same-sex marriage based on their interpretation of the Bible’s stance against homosexuality (Dobson, O’Brien). Other opponents argue against the practice based on universal tenets of moral behavior, fundamental beliefs that are said to underpin our country’s existing laws and should not be eroded (George, Finnis, Friedman).
Gay marriage has been a controversial issue for over half a century; one of the issues is where gays aren’t allowed to marry another individual of the same sex. There have been propositions, bans and legalizations on same-sex marriage that differ from state to state. Some states for example such as California and New York allow gay marriage and the remaining states disagree with that decision. The thoughts and beliefs of citizens of different states also have conflict, especially in the southeastern region of the United States as they are anti-gay. Some individuals feel that in the traditional definition that marriage is usually between one man and one woman. However, there are others who believe that true love does not have a gender and everyone has the right to marry whomever the want. Even if the whole nation decided to officially prohibit gay marriage, or legalize it, there will always be people with logical and moral conflicting opinions and judgments on same-sex marriage. The main argument is to analyze what actually determines a marriage to be acceptable or unacceptable to society.
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.