Gay Marriage Should Be Legal

The United States of America was founded as a secular sanctuary for ideals like freedom, equality, and tolerance – few will argue against that. Over its history American culture has radically evolved as it strived to meet the ideals its nation was based upon, making changes like ending slavery and providing legal equality for women and minorities, changes that at the time seemed absurd but today are unquestionable merits that define what an “American” is. The quest to reach the ultimate utopian society continues today as true Americans fight the evils of ignorance, stubborn bigotry and the fear to change that still manifest themselves in a large portion of U.S. citizens, preventing this nation from moving forward. One of the outstanding minorities still left to be granted the ideals of freedom, equality, and tolerance are homosexuals trying to obtain the right to marry the person they want to spend the rest of their life with, regardless of gender. Same-sex marriages should be recognized in the eyes of the U.S. government in accordance with its responsibility to provide all American citizens equal freedoms.

The United States Constitution protects certain liberties in the Bill of Rights and rights deemed “fundamental” that are “traditionally protected by our society.” (Michael H. v. Gerald D.). The liberty at issue in this case is the right to marry, which has been deemed fundamental by this Court in Loving v. Virginia, where we stated that “[t]he freedom to marry has long been recognized as one of the vital personal rights essential to the orderly pursuit of happiness by free men.” (Loving v. Virginia). The petitioners in the case at bar seek that liberty by marrying someone of the same sex and having their marriages be equal to traditional, opposite-sex couples.

It is true that marriage in this nation traditionally has been regarded as a relationship exclusively between a man and a woman, and many of our nation’s multiple religions define marriage in precisely those terms. But with the Supreme Court has always previously considered marriage in that context, the underlying rights and liberties that marriage embodies are not in any way confined to heterosexuals. One’s sexuality is not a preference, it is immutable, unchangeable, and the Constitution protects us all against prejudices and discrimination based on immutable differences. Not only is not allowing same-sex couples to marry discriminatory, it also makes gays second class citizens. When we as a nation refuse to accord the same marital status to gays and lesbians, we discourage same-sex couples from forming the same relationships we encourage for others, and we are essentially telling gays, those of who love them, and society as a whole that their relationships are less worthy, less legitimate, less permanent and less valued. By not legalizing same-sex marriages the US demeans their relationships and demeans gays as individuals. Same-sex marriages must be legalized.

In the summer of 2015, history was made in the hallowed halls of the Supreme Court of the United States. The Court had made, with a 5-4 majority, a controversial ruling decreeing that denying equal recognition to same-sex couples was in violation of the Equal Protections Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Those on the minority cited concerns of judicial restraint, the connection between marriage and procreation, and whether or not marriage is a Constitutional issue in the first place. Nevertheless, equal recognition for same-sex couples became the law of the land.

A metamorphosis in how the American judicial system perceives same-sex marriage, has developed over the past forty years. In October, 1971, the Supreme Court ruled that: "The institution of marriage as a union of man and woman, uniquely involving the procreation and rearing of children within a family, is as old as the book of Genesis.”

The legalization of gay marriage has been a controversial issue in many state courts since the mid 1970s. Gay marriage scares many people because it strays from the norms of heterosexual relationships. Traditional American ideals have become a part of culture and society that everyone, regardless of sexual orientation, or race, or gender, expect to have as a basic human rights. Several times in history these have been identified as inalienable rights. One of the expected rights of many American citizens is the right to choose who they love, who they marry, and how they live their day to day life. When heterosexual Americans were introduced to the idea of same sex marriage, they became afraid that it would “taint the minds of the young members of the community,” since homosexualty was and still is frowned upon in the community. Thus, the homosexual community’s opportunity to freely choose how to live their life is taken

A gay couple from Indianapolis who have waited to marry for years have been quoted as saying: “We 're positive because the mindset in this nation seems to be that it is unconstitutional to say that our marriages are different from any other marriage.” (pro-con,1) This means that gay people are staying optimistic. Prohibiting gay marriage is considered discrimination to gays because the government is not giving homosexual couples the same rights as gay heterosexuals, which is also unconstitutional. Therefore, same-sex couples should have access to the same marriage benefits and public acknowledgment enjoyed by heterosexual couples. (pro-con,1)

Look back twenty-five years ago, on same sex marriage was a ?thought experiment? in our culture. The idea promoted primarily by those on the left and other cultures who?noticed?? amount of?boundaries to personal freedom and behavior. (April 6th, 2013 Dr.Jim Eckman).Just Seventeen years ago Congress pass a Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) which define a marriage, as a union between a man and women. In recent years, the debate has moved beyond questions of individual rights and proper family formation to include questions that pit religious liberty against non-discrimination policies. While all laws legalizing same-sex marriage contain some conscience protections allowing churches and other religious groups to refuse to marry gay and lesbian couples,

The institutional barriers to legally recognizing same-sex marriage engender a sense of injustice and an unethical violation of a Universal Human Right. While author Card does identify these fallacies and states that the law should not determine which adult unions are legitimate, she posits an unsettling alternative. Suggesting that same-sex marriage should not have been a political issue and proposing the abolition of marriage denies the LGBT community social recognition and an equal opportunity to choose.

Having one loving parent is good. Having two loving parents is great. Having a mother and a father is traditional. Having two mothers or two fathers is wrong. This is what we are told to believe but as we learn from our past and grow as a society, we start to look for positive change in which our values are challenged and the truth becomes clear. It is not right to take away the basic rights of a person because of their sexual orientation. It is not right for a homosexual couple to be at a disadvantage and lack financial security because of who they choose to love. It’s true, marriage is sacred but it does not have to be defined as a union between one-man-one-woman. Truth is sexual orientation should not be a factor in regards to government protection of the basic rights of the people.

“We’re here, we’re queer, get over it.” In 1990, these words, shouted and displayed proudly on signs waved by the activist group, Queer Nation, were revolutionary. Never, not since the Stonewall Riots, had non-straight, non-cis people been so vocal about their existence and demanded acceptance – something that straight people take for granted on a daily basis. However, in the years since the Riots, LGBT activism has become much more mainstream, no longer whispered about behind closet doors or something to be wholly ashamed of. Gay marriage is legal in all 50 United States, something that has been fought for since the conception of the LGBT movement. In fact, gay couples are routinely being featured on popular television and other forms of media. Some might say that in 2016, the dreams of the rioters in Stonewall have been realized. Marriage rights and the spotlight on nighttime television; equality seems to truly be right on the horizon.

The Supreme Court’s decision to rule in favor of gay marriage was eye opening to me and made me dig deep for an honest opinion. While I do not necessarily agree with gay couples or gay marriage, I came to a fair conclusion. I am surprised it took this long to finally get this law passed since gay couples are no different from straight couples, and no one should be denied the right to marry. The backlash to this was very astonishing and disgusting. All these couples want to do is love each other and live a normal life just as a straight couple would.

Up until about ten years ago the thought of same-sex marriage in the United States was taboo and predominately looked at as wrong. This was only dreamt about for many yet over the decades it has become more and more a reality each day. In American society today they 're 35 States where gay marriage is legal and only 15 where it is not. Despite the number of states on board, the gay community still doesn 't have the same rights as heterosexuals. In most cultures, the LGBTQ community can 't adopt or marry, and a lot of religious still oppose homosexuality. Although the gay rights movement is extremely popular, should there be limits? Can homosexuals be just as good parents as heterosexual parents? Is it right for a child to grow up with

Over the last couple of years things have changed around the world, the things that I am talking about would be the people and how they make themselves appear. We were all born different, we don’t think the same, we don’t ack the same, and we all do different things. One of those things is who we fall in love with, or whom we think is attractive. Some people when they are born may be a male and is attracted to females, also a male can be attracted to males; a female can be attracted to females. They are allowed to be attracted to the same sex or the different sex. In the United States they passed a law were gay marriage is now allowed in all 50 states, which many people have an issue with, but what is it around the world. What do all of

Marriage, by definition, is the legally or formally recognized union of a man and a Woman (or, in some jurisdictions, two people of the same sex) as partners in a relationship. In some cases, marriage between two people of the same sex is more commonly known as gay marriage. Here in the United States of America, it is believed that every citizen should have inalienable rights, yet LGBTQ communities are constantly denied of their human rights as an American. Due to their sexual orientation, they are discriminated and gay marriage is viewed as inhumane. Whether a person is Caucasian, Negro, gay, straight, transgender or queer, they need to be given all equal rights as citizens of the United States. In fact, as of October 21, 2014, same-sex marriage has been legalized in thirty-two states in the United States: Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont, New Hampshire, New York, Washington, Maine, Maryland, California, Delaware, Rhode Island, Minnesota, New Jersey, Hawaii, New Mexico, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Indiana, Oklahoma, Utah, Virginia, Wisconsin, Colorado, Nevada, West Virginia, North Carolina, Idaho, Alaska, Arizona and Wyoming (“Gay Marriage Pros and Cons” (2014). There are several reasons as to why people are against the legalization of same-sex marriage, yet the three most prominent are the possibility in the rise of divorce rates, the possible legalization of all marriage, and the development of a child in a same-sex partnership household (“Gay Marriage Pros