The Debate Over Same Sex Marriage

On June 26, 2015, the US Supreme Court ruled that the US Constitution guarantees the right for same-sex couples to marry. Many conservative groups do NOT agree with this decision. The gay marriage debate has been simmering for as long as I can remember. The four articles I have selected give information from four different perspectives including that of liberals, conservatives, homosexuals, and orthodox Jews. With so many differing opinions, one can understand why it's been so hard for the nation to come to agree on this issue.

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

Learning family advocacy requires students to develop an understanding of contemporary cultural issues surrounding traditional marriage. The struggle over defining marriage was thought to be somewhat settled through the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA); however, as this law’s ramifications were realized, greater debate resulted about the moral, philosophical, and civic repercussions of this legal definition. This paper will provide a better understanding of the historical and worldview changes that occurred within the United States over homosexuality and same-sex marriage (SSM). After gaining a better understanding of these issues, the paper will also provide an exploration of the strengths and weaknesses of DOMA from these differing perspectives. In addition, recommendations will be offered for further changes of law and advocacy that would encourage the altering of current thought intent on stifling the defense of traditional marriage.

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.”

"Getting the Facts: Same-Sex Marriage." Family Research Institute. Family Research Institute, 2012. Web. 02 Apr. 2012.

To contravene God and the bible must be the incipient trend since homosexuals celebrate it and feel that is it ok to get espoused under God. Marriage is a sacred commitment between man and woman and the legalization of gay espousement threatens the Americans religious rights. This topic matters because Christians feel as if getting married under God is an act of dishonor and that it is irrelevant. Marriage should stay between a man and woman because that is verbalized in the bible, children are more likely to live a normal life, and religious beliefs are not being ignored.

As said by Lucy A. Hawke, the women “were restricted to the home to provide childcare and attend to household duties” while the males got to “work as breadwinner, to be the achiever”(Article 23, 1). This made female civil rights advocates upset and they began to fight for the rights they deserve, which triggered a change in the definition of marriage. Making women want to be considered equals in the matter of their partnership considered marriage. In 1967 at the rearing end of segregation, interracial marriage became legalized after a heated battle of Loving vs. Virginia which ended in a win towards interracial marriage because of the Equal Protection Clause. It states “that no state shall deny to any person within its jurisdiction "the equal protection of the laws””. That everyone’s rights are protected so why aren’t homosexuals. The first case documented on the issue of same-sex marriage was Baker vs. Nelson. It was a marriage application filed by two gay rights advocates who were students at the University of Minnesota. The clerk denied the application based on a state law that restricted marriage to because they were the

Those that are oppose same sex marriage focus their reasoning on religious beliefs. Same sex couples do not want to be treated as second class citizens, they do not focus on what religion states; they just want to be treated as equal as heterosexuals when it comes to their right. Same sex couples believe if one is to bar any class of people from marrying whomever they choose, it then deprives them of their social institution; that many feel defines the most meaningful part of life, to marry someone one loves. Same sex couples believe that their relationships are no different than that of a heterosexual marriage. Same sex couples can have maintain a home together, provide an environment that children can thrive in and care for each other the same as heterosexual married couples do (Goldberg-Hiller, 2002).

The political aspects of whether same-sex couples should be allowed to federal and government recognized marriages are a very complex issue. There are basically two sides to the political argument of whether same-sex couples should be allowed to marry. On one side are the liberals who feel that marriage is a civil right that should be denied based on the basis of a person's sexual orientation. On the other side you have conservatives who feel that marriage is an institution in which should only constitute one man and one woman. In this report we are going to examine how the issue of same-sex marriages are affecting our current political environment, how politics is affecting the movement for

Gay marriages have been an ongoing event in the United States for many years. It was not until June 26, 2015 when gay marriage was legalized for all states with a five to four ratio. With gay marriage being legalized, there became many controversies in the nation. The most recent controversy was when a Kentucky county clerk was jailed after defying a federal court order to issue marriage licenses to a same-sex couple. She did not issue because she did not believe that homosexuality should be accepted in society. Many people agreed to the act but others opposed. There are many ways to look at homosexuality and here are three different sociological perspectives of how gay marriage is recognized. The perspectives are structural functionalism, symbolic interactionism, and conflict theory.

Same-sex marriage has been an issue among society for many years. Not all people understand there is no ban on same sex-marriage nor is it illegal. In all fifty states there are couples of the same sex who live together, ones who choose their professional job to be in a workplace where joint benefits are offered, and ones who choose a religious community which accepts their relationship. Those who believe this is an issue and feel it should be illegal were likely raised to believe it is wrong to marry someone of the same gender. Whether these people in society were raised by what their religion believes or what their families have

For years and years, homosexuals have fought for the right to marry their loved one. It has been looked down upon, called immoral, sinful, and deeds of the devil, but that is not the way it is seen by those who support or engage in it. Supporters view marriage as the union of two individuals who love each other. They no longer see it as the concept of "traditional marriage". They believe traditional marriage has changed over time, and that the definition of marriage as being between one man and one woman is historically inaccurate (should

Often, the proponents of same sex-marriages are those individuals who personally gay. They base their argument in their supposed orientation to same-sex attraction. According to these individuals, this orientation is inborn and consequently involuntary. That being the case, they argue that the only way they can lead happy and actualized lives is only if they are able to pursue exploit their sexuality in the way they are oriented. Given that, they have a claim to human rights, like every other person who is not gay; they claim that any restriction to their formalizing of gay marriages is contemptuous to the inalienable nature of their rights.

Same-Sex marriage has been a huge topic in recent days, weeks, months, and years. One by one numerous countries and states have realized that the right to marry is exactly that a RIGHT! But still so many fight against it through reasons of religion, fear of the unknown, or just to be hateful. Left and right they’ve tried every way possible to keep loving couples (some with children, either adopted or born via surrogacy) from getting to say “This is my husband or this is my wife”, share a last name, stand before their friends, family, and God (or whatever higher power in which they believe) and say “This man/woman is my forever.”, and even more seriously, have access to the legal benefits of marriage that are too many to mention in this moment but each is something that many opposite-sex couples take for granted every day. I, being a Christian and a gay man who hopes to one day say “I do” to the man God blesses me to have, have heard both sides of the story numerous times in many different ways and have noticed the main arguments used against this issue seem to consist of “It goes against the definition of a traditional marriage”, “It will destroy all marriages”, and “It endangers children/will decrease the population”. All of these arguments, in context and lack of research into the opposite side, do seem do have some play in this matter but when you look at what the

Such as pedophilia and polygamy which are controversial subjects but not as much as gay marriage. Even though comparing pedophilia and polygamy to gay marriage is a little much, people feel that allowing gay marriage goes against their morals, their views on society, lives they want for their children, and the future. For some violating same-sex couples civil right is worth it in the end only because they want to protect the value of a man-woman type marriage. To deny gays and lesbians the right to marry is in violation of their civil rights as a citizen of the United States of America.