Imagine that a government intentionally denied over 1,000 rights and benefits from one group of people who have not broken laws. Would you support that government in any way? In the United States, same-sex couples are denied legal marriage, and because of that it has divided the American people for several years. It’s a sad and devastating thing to see the ones you love be denied the right to marry the person you love, no matter what gender. On October 17, 2014, the courts had made a decision that had stirred up a lot of controversy with the legislator and our governor of Arizona, regarding same sex marriage (Fischer, Capitol Media Service). The idea of legalizing same sex marriage has put many people in the United States on edge. Marriage …show more content…
The state of Arizona had put a ban on same sex marriage in 2008 with Proposition 102. That amendment had passed with 56% in favor and 44% that was against the proposition (Wikipedia). However, on October 17, 2014, the U.S District Court Judge, John Sedwick had struck down a 1996 law. He declared the ban on same sex marriage as unconstitutional and would not appeal the ruling either. That meant that same sex couples were allowed to immediately marry in the state of Arizona (Freedom to Marry, October 2014). Today in the United States it is legal to marry for same sex couples in 35 states and banned in 15 (ProCon.org, November 26, 2014). About five or six years ago, I had been told that my mother, Kelley had a girlfriend, named Amy. Although at the time I never understood how that could be possible, I knew she meant what she said. Her and her girlfriend have been together for five years and never once been able to be considered a “legal couple”, until now. Amy and my mom can now marry each other and it be allowed in our state and country. According to freedomtomarry.com, In Arizona, a majority of voters support the freedom to marry for same-sex couples, with 55% saying they support marriage, along with the 35% saying that they oppose marriage of same sex couples (Behavior Research Center, September
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
Legalizing gay marriage has been a controversial topic in the past few years. In my opinion, gay people should be allowed to get married because it is a civil right. It shouldn 't matter what gender they prefer because they 're still regular people. Making gay marriage illegal, is the same as taking away someone 's freedom and civil rights. That is unethical and completely awful. There 's no harm being done by letting two people who are in love with each other get married. However, many religious fundamentalists are against this and believe gay marriage is wrong and needs to be stopped. Homosexual couples should have the right to get married because it 's a civil right and their sexual preference doesn 't make them any less human.
Throughout American history, we have seen the United States become more progressive in their social issues, such as the abolishment of slavery, women’s suffrage, and the Civil Rights Movement. But as time has passed, we have encountered another group that is being discriminated against: homosexuals. Some states try their best to give equal rights to homosexuals so that they are respected as equally as everyone else. But in many states, such as Kansas and Arizona, private companies and businesses are given the right to turn down homosexual couples if it interferes with their religious beliefs. These two states also included places like hospitals where homosexuals can be denied from medical attention. These laws are very inhumane and are very hurtful to a large population of people today. But what if the people in states such as Kansas and Arizona think it is okay to have these laws instilled?
Imagine a government that denies 1,138 rights and benefits to a certain group of people who have not broken any laws. Would you support this government? In the United States, same-sex couples face exactly this kind of discrimination. Since the 1920’s the LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Trans) community has been fighting for equality, starting with the Society of Human Rights in Chicago, the earliest known gay rights organization (“American” 1). The movement transformed completely from a couple of activists to a widespread protest in the 1969 Stonewall Riots. A gay bar in New York, called the Stonewall Inn, experienced a late night police raid for supposed bootlegging of alcohol. However, after the officers began frisking lesbians and assaulting gay men, the crowd rebelled and refused to be arrested or subdued. Three days of rioting occurred throughout New York streets with cries of “Gay Power!” and “We Shall Overcome!” This powerful uprising sparked the gay liberation movement and pride in sexual orientation (“American” 1). Recently, a spotlight has been thrown on gay marriage, or as Liz Feldman puts it, “marriage. You know, because I had lunch this afternoon, not ‘gay lunch’. I parked my car; I didn't ‘gay park’ it.” Advocates of same-sex marriage emphasize the disparity between the religious aspect of marriage and the civil portion that establishes economic and legal ties. The church can set their own standards in their private domain; however, the government represents a diverse population and should remain unprejudiced in administering its civil policies (Roleff 68). Government action is exactly what the LGBT community needs in order to attain their goal of equality. A boost in civil unions and same-sex marriage legalization is sweepi...
...nstead of setting marriage limitations based off of race, the government now says that same-sex marriage is illegal in over half of the states. 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.
The world today is surrounded with many controversial issues. One such issue would be the topic of gay marriage. This country has grown around one major tradition, being the definition of marriage. It’s more-less looked at as a religious or legal commitment between a women and man, to express their love and compassion towards one another, being the last and final step there is to take with that significant other. Homosexual relationships are rapidly gaining acceptance in this country. However, the Defensive of Marriage Act, that former president Clinton signed in 1996, is holding many back from being able to marry what could be the significant other of their dreams. Homosexuality effects from 8% to 15% of all males, as well as females being slightly less than the male population. To put this in a more familiar context, there are as many gays and lesbians in America today as there are unemployed citizens. There are a few states which formed a type of commitment called a "civil union", which basically is marriage without using the word "marriage." Gay couples are denied significant rights when they are not allowed to marry, and these result in injustices within society. Most carry the burden of hiding their sexual identity for fear of being disrespected or mistreated by the general population who remain ignorant to the causes and circumstances of homosexuality. This puzzles many due to the excess amount of investigative work that has been done on the phenomenon, as well as puzzling the church as to who would want to look into the concept in such a sinful matter.
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
America and many of the countries of this world have based their constitutions around basic human rights and rights achieved through the actions of their forefathers. We have strived, since the early colonization of our land, for equality and refuge for unjust prosecution. Despite this, in our advanced, 21st century society, there is a group of people who are still denied a basic natural right. The gay and lesbian community have been fighting for equality since the founding of the Society for Human Rights located in Chicago, formed in 1924. For 89 years these people have been denied their natural rights to be happy and wed in holy union. Historically people have fought, and won their freedoms and rights, and traditionally, gays and lesbians
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
Same-sex couples in many states are still fighting everyday to just simply get married. Thirty-five states have made same-sex marriage legal, but there are still fifteen states that have a ban on same-sex marriage and those fifteen will not recognize the union (“Same-Sex Marriage Fast Facts”). Those fifteen states now have an easier time now to keep the
Quite often people ask the question, why should gay marriage be legalized? However, what they should really be asking is: why should other people be able to decide who one can or can not marry? When a marriage occurs between a man and a woman, society does not seem to care. Yet, when two men or two women decide to marry, society acts like it is completely absurd. People do not realize how beneficial legalizing same-sex marriage can be.
“It is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married” (Procon.org), said Barack Obama the 44th and current president of the United States. The gay right movement started in 1969, riots, struggles, and problems followed after. In today’s society, it has been showed that people are opening up to gay rights. There has been effort in protecting the gays and discrimination against gays is now considered a hate crime and is illegal. However, gay rights still to this day struggle with state and federal legal circumstances. Same- sex marriage needs to be legal, couples who choose to be of the same-sex should be allowed to celebrate their commitment with each other the way heterosexual couples get to, both publicly and society acceptable.
In recent years, same-sex marriage has become a more controversial topic on whether it’s right or wrong. People should not feel coerced to agree with something they believe is wrong; clearly, same-sex marriage is immoral and unnatural. Many complications come with same-sex marriages including financial pressures, social pressures, moral pressures, and health risks.
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.