Gay Marriage
In the U.S. 55 percent of those aged 18-29 support same-sex marriage, but only 21 percent of those over the age of 65 do" (Gill). In America today the young generations of kids are starting to take more action than ever. They are voting, supporting, and bringing awareness to the world. Gay Marriage is a very touchy subject to a lot of people. It seems 50 percent of people are against it and the other 50 percent are for it. The younger part of society believes they should have the same rights as man and woman, but the older part of society finds it insulting. In 1996, Congress passed the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which prohibits federal recognition of same-sex marriages and allows a state to ignore gay marriages performed outside of its borders. Four states prohibited gay marriage before 1996; Maryland, New Hampshire, Wisconsin, and Wyoming (Gill). Today there are only two states in the U.S. that allow same-sex marriage; Massachusetts and California.
Most people think individuals choose to be gay, but studies show that altered genes are actually what make people gay. Mr. Neil Swidey did a study on twin boys. At seven years-old he could already tell that one of the boys was gay. They were brought up the same way and ever since they were born, their mother could tell. Gay Marriage is a very controversial issue in today's society, but what people need to understand is that they deserve to be happy too.
Same-sex marriage has been around since 1924 and is in the Constitution. Even Romans were open with their sexuality. Many religious people are against gay marriage and gay people. However, they don not know about the sexuality of Leonardo da Vinci and Bishop V. Gene Robinson. Both famous artist and loved Bishop are gay. da Vinci's homosexuality was "expressed in his personal life and art" (Johnson) When he was 24 years of age he was arrested for sodomy, which was considered a "serious crime in the 15th century" (Johnson).
56 year-old, Bishop V. Gene Robinson of "the Episcopal church is the fist openly gay bishop. The Anglican Communion, of which the Episcopal Church is one of the 38 member churches, is divided over the issue of homosexuality and feels Bishop Robinson's confirmation may be a burden to its members. However, the archbishop of Canterbury supports gay priests and believe he was elected for his gifts not his sexuality" (Johnson).
Gay marriage is one of the many controversial arguments known today. While the argument is 50/50 states do not know to pass gay marriage or ban it. Since 1924 gays have been fighting for equal rights. In June of 2006, The Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA) proposed the Marriage Protection Amendment which failed twice ("The American Gay Rights Movement: A Timeline").
For many years gays have been fighting for equal rights and ultimately gay marriage. Homosexuals should be allowed married to whom ever they love. As long as that someone makes them happy and is always there for them and loves them back no-matter-what gender they happen to be. Everyone deserves someone special. Homosexuals do not choose to be gay. There is nothing wrong with them and they are perfectly normal. In 1973, The American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from its official list of mental disorders ("The American Gay Rights Movement: A Timeline").
All married couples have benefits. The gays and their lovers do not get to have any of these valuable benefits. No insurance, healthcare, or even be recognized as family. "In medical decisions partners can make emergency decisions but gay partners can only make medical decisions in the registered states and may not be able to make decisions out of state (Johnson)". If a spouse dies, that spouse receives any earned social security or veteran benefits, but for gays, partners get nothing and lose everything (Johnson).
Same-sex marriage is not just about being together, it is about all the legal rights also. If gays adopt a child, soon after get divorced, they have absolutely no legal binding (Johnson). Marriage is tied into a lot of situations and same-sex marriage should not be viewed as a threat to anyone. Marriage is about being together, making decisions together, and sharing everything together.
Civil Unions and same-sex marriage are two completely different things. Many people think gays can life happily within the unions but they cannot. They have no benefits, and have to go through very hard criticism. This is not fair and in the Constitution it states that everyone should be treated equally. "The number of legal benefits for marriage are over 1,049 federal and state level benefits and civil unions only have 300 state level benefits with no federal protection" (Johnson).
In tax relief civil unions can only file jointly in state of civil registration, while married couples can file both federal and state tax returns jointly (Johnson). Because the main cause of same-sex marriage is on jointed benefits, there should be a program that supports favored benefits to same-sex partnership.
As homosexuals continue to fight for their rights, many married couples believe their partnership should be called something else besides marriage. Although they do have the unions, it does not help them beneficially. The union limits them completely from almost all marriage rights and does not recognize them as a real partnership. They should be allowed to hove the same benefits as a married couple and maybe be called a domestic partnership to decrease the threat between married couples.
For over 200 years, 16 Amendments have added to the Constitution. The most recent one added was the Equal Rights Amendment but was not supported by President Ronald Reagan who was the first American president to oppose it. Today many democratic people are trying to pass The Federal Marriage Amendment, which will protect marriage. It has been turned down twice (Gill). This seems unfair and irresponsible for they same-sex marriage, and the benefits.
This will be an issue for many years to come. It will be a controversial issue for more than a decade. Same-sex marriage may seem to be a threat but it is really just two couples in love. "The Human Rights Campaign is America's largest civil rights organization working to achieve gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender equality. HRC strives to end discrimination against GLBT citizensand achieve fundamental fairness and equality for all ("Working for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Equal Rights").
Citation
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Jonhson, Ramon. "In the New: 1st Gay Bishop Confirmed." About.com. 12 Sep 2008
<http://gaylife.about.com/cs/religion/a/gaybishop.htm>.
Jonhson, Ramon. "Was Leonardo da Vinci Gay?." About.com. 12 Sep 2008
<http://gaylife.about.com/od/gaycelebrityprofiles/f/l eonardodavinci.htm>.
Swidey, Neil. "What Makes People Gay?." boston.com. August 14 2005. 12 Sep 2008
<http://www.boston.com/news/globe/magazine/articles/2 005/08/14/what_makes_people_gay/>.
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<http://infoplease.com/ipa/Ao761909.html>.
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2008 <http://www.hrc.org/about_us/index.htm>.