Gay marriage. We've been talking about it at work lately, all of us agreed: Is this seriously still an issue? It's as backwards as Jim Crow laws or the need to fight for the 19th Amendment. Are human beings seriously still being denied the right to marry, make families, share the privileges and joys and (as my more bitter co-workers suggest) miseries of marriage because they want to share them with a member of their own sex? Really?
I know that in writing this I risk alienating my more conservative friends, and that is certainly not my intention. I am just absolutely dumbfounded that gay and lesbian persons do not have the full rights that I hold in the United States, a country that is supposedly founded on freedom and tolerance. This is my big, loud "Huh?"
Admittedly, only a few years ago I was on the fence about the issue. I decided to write about the legalization of gay marriage for my ethics class, but I was undecided, unsure of what I really thought about it. I ended up writing against it only because it was easier and I knew that was what the professor wanted to hear. But the arguments I used, even if they did win me a 98, were ridiculous. Gay people shouldn't be allowed to marry because they can't reproduce? Neither can the infertile or the elderly--but no one is stopping them. And what about people who don't even want children? Should they be banned from marrying?
How is granting people who genuinely love one another the right to marry going to damage my marriage, make my marriage any less special? It isn't. And the next argument is that if we let gay people marry, what's next? People wanting to marry their dogs? I won't even validate that illogical, heartless argument with a response.
I realize that I am ranting and oversimplifying the opposing arguments, but I'm just so fed up with it all. I know that some people view homosexuality as sinful and against their religious beliefs--and they have every right to do so--but how many other "sinful activities" are religious people working to ban? I haven't seen them trying to deny marriage to heterosexuals who have sex before marriage. Why should my religious beliefs determine someone else's happiness? It's disgusting.
I don't think this is just a religious issue, or even just a legal issue. It's a basic human rights issue. A ban on homosexual marriage is, simply, inhumane. So that's it: I am praying for same-sex marriage to be legalized in all 50 states.
Faith is Key
7 years ago
4 comments:
This is quite a divisive topic isn't it? No matter the opinion one shares it is sure to bring the ire of one crowd or the other. I generally keep my opinions to myself on issues like this but I will make an exception in this case.
I can really understand the arguement on both sides. The essence of it seems to be one of percieved human rights vs. percieved biblical mandate. I wonder if there is a common ground. Of course the problem of compromise is that both sides must be prepared to relenquish something. Given the polarity of this issue that is unlikely. It appears that once again, the desire to perpetuate conflict trumps the desire to find a peaceable solution.
You should have Facebook automatically import your blog posts into your FB profile. I considered posting a comment here, but decided it would not be wise to explain my opinion on this topic on the open Internet. Great post, btw!
I appreciate your heart for people.
Love you "Big E".
I've been in favor of the legalization of gay marriage for such a long time that it's tiresome to recount the meticulous arguments I crafted during my days at SEU. I've let my skills slide since then, because then they were more often needed to be dredged up as rejoinders to the weak rabble-rousings frequently employed there. Now I am among a more diverse crowd of opinions.
To me, it's a question of personal freedom. As long a person does not take away the freedoms (which are to his life and his property) of another, then his desired action should be legal.
Post a Comment