Same Sex Marriage Should Be Legal Essay

The history of homosexual people in the United States began in the early 1900s when the concept of Boston marriages became common. These

Historically, the same sex marriage movement can be traced back to the early 1970’s, when gay rights activists begun the movement by bringing forward three suits in Minnesota, Kentucky, and Washington, but none of the suits were successful (Rosenberg). Following these actions in 1986, the case of Bowers v. Hardwick was brought before the Supreme Court

The first spark to set flames to the waging war on marriage equality happened on October 15, 1971. In the Supreme Court case of Baker v. Nelson on October 15, 1971, one of three cases brought forth by same-sex couples, Richard Baker and James Richard McConnell were denied a marriage license by a county court clerk in Minnesota in May of 1970 (Minnesota Legislature, 1971, Richard John Baker and Another v. Gerald R. Nelson). The initial trial court dismissed their claim, declaring that the clerk had the power to refuse the right of marriage to gay couples. The couple lost again in the Minnesota Supreme Court, and the U.S. Supreme Court followed by confirming the ruling. For the next twenty four years, basic human rights were continuously denied nationwide in cases similar to Baker v. Nelson and in anti-gay attempts to restrict homosexual marriage. Eventually, there showed signs of hope such as the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in May, 1996 and Massachusetts becoming the first state to legalize same-sex marriage in December, 1996. In relatively recent news, the LGBTQ community celebrated a monumental win as the Supreme Court ruled same-sex marriage a constitutional right for Americans nationwide. On the 25th of June, 2015, many rejoiced this new ruling. Unfortunately, just as many were disgusted at the new legislation. The topic of marriage equality is a unique controversy due to the fact that it gathers so many strong opinions to the cause from many different walks of life.

That was the day the first legal homosexual marriage occurred. Since then, parts of the world have let homosexual marriage into their culture. “In 2004, Massachusetts became the first state to issue marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples” (Gay Marriage State by State: From a Few States to the Whole Nation). Four years later, in 2008, another state legalized it. This state was Connecticut. “Citing that decision in part, dozens of federal district courts declared state marriage restrictions to be unconstitutional, the Supreme Court declined to intervene, and the number of states authorizing same-sex marriage expanded rapidly” (Gay Marriage State by State: From a Few States to the Whole Nation). The last states to legalize it were: almost every state between Texas and Florida, North and South Dakota, and Nebraska. Since then, protests about churches not marrying homosexual couples have occurred, streets have parades marching down them, with people carrying their rainbow colored flags to represent “gay pride” and hoping that this is enough for people to protest with them to let homosexual marriage never be refused again.

First acts a) - when it comes to the historical aspects of gay marriage, one of the most popular incidents occurred On May 18 1970, some university students applied to a clerk for a marriage license. They were denied the license because the applicants were both men ( pro con). This cause outraged around the university and in the community. Students began to protest against the clerk. This influenced others to deny or reject gays. Since the U.S Supreme Court issued its decision on the federal Defense of marriage Act, several states have shown advances in becoming free marriage states.

Traditional wedding vows state, “I, (name), take you (name), to be my (wife/husband), to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part”(Callaway). Marriage is defined as two people bond together legally under the protection of laws. Couples are able to express and establish their life long relationships officially, publicly, and permanently. Due to the fact that homosexual relationships are increasingly more accepted by the public, gay marriage has become one of the most controversial topics throughout the US. The fundamental human right of marriage should not be limited to a man and a woman;

Although same sex marriage has become well know in the most recent years it has been acknowledge as early as 35.5 years ago. In fact according to Procon.org “On May 18, 1970, two University of Minnesota students, Richard John 'Jack' Baker and James Michael McConnell applied to Hennepin County District

Same-sex marriage, a controversial social issue in the U.S. for several decades, is constantly evolving. When viewed historically, great change has happened in a short period of time, in the movement for same-sex marriage, given that until recently, no society in thousands of years has ever allowed it.

Gay marriage has been one of the most common topic under discussion, arguments and quarrels since couple of years in almost every nation of the world. Looking deep down to the region of United States, same-sex marriage or gay marriage has not been legalized and documented in most of its jurisdictions. However, it is prudent to note that with the beginning of the twenty first century, only a few of US states have legally recognized the gay marriage through court verdicts and legislative proceedings and have lawfully allowed the gay people to get into a relationship (Wolfson 2004).

The fight to legalize same-sex marriage has been a long, dramatic fight that has taken place over the past several decades. It is believed to have emerged during the 1960’s counterculture movement. Since then Americans have used the right to petition (216) and the right to assemble (216) as well as more serious methods to push for equality for persons identifying as homosexuals. In 1972, in the case of Richard John Baker v. Gerald

The next same-sex case was in 2003. This case is Goodridge v. Department of Public Health. In this case same-sex couples were granted the right to be married in the state of Massachusetts. This case had a 4-3 verdict and was the first of its kind in the country by a final Appellate Court (Goodridge et al., n.d.) This case was also the case that began same-sex couple acceptance in the United

Marriage is defined as a sacred union between two people, traditionally a man and a woman. The 21st Century has pushed the boundaries of societal views of ‘traditional marriage’ with the legal recognition of homosexual partnerships. In 2001, the Pew Research Polling Center began conducting surveys to gage public opinion on homosexual marriage. They discovered that over the span of 15 years the approval rate for homosexual marriage increased from 35% in 2001 to 55% in 2015. While the approval rate for same sex marriage grew 20% in 15 years (around .75% per year) the percentage of those who opposed naturally decreased at roughly the same pace. The disapproval rate in 2001 was 57% but by 2015 it had declined to 39%. What changed? Advocates of

The history of same sex marriage has been recorded since the beginning of civilization. Ancient Roman Empire accepted same-sex relations. A lot of the roman emperors were homosexuals. However,

Allowing same-sex marriages would change the basic definition of marriage. Marriage is an important commitment of a man and a woman who contribute to civilization. Therefore, the loss of contributions due to someone’s sexual orientation should not be rewarded with a privilege such as marriage. Same-sex marriages affect many factors such as children, the concept of marriage, and humanity. However, it is not a misdemeanor to love somebody of the same gender but it can rigorously damage many aspects of life.

The history on same-sex marriage does not go very far back in history. The first