Essay about The Case for Gay Marriage - 1673 Words

â€Å"The freedom to marry has long been recognized as one of the vital personal rights essential to the orderly pursuit of happiness by free men.† – United States Supreme Court majority decision in Loving v. Virginia. America is a nation built on fundamental rights. In our Declaration of Independence, our new nation guaranteed its citizens â€Å"Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness†. Today, the political debate over the decisive issue of gay marriage forces us to rethink our commitment to those deliberate words. Throughout our history, America’s homosexual population has struggled against society to prove that they have the right to marry anyone they love, regardless of sex. Until only recently, in fact, the vast majority of†¦show more content†¦Most of the opposition would argue that forbidding gays to marry is not discrimination simply because, to them, marriage is defined as a union between one man and one woman. Therefore, many of those against gay marriage are still in support of gay rights and would argue that the state should instead recognize same-sex â€Å"civil unions† and give the civil unions the same benefits of marriage. However, they argue that a gay partnership should not have the designation as marriage. Those in favor of civil unions instead of marriage will tell you the two institutions are equal. But they are not. On the surface, civil unions may sound like a good idea - even I supported them at first. However, I would argue that civil unions are formed out of exactly the same policy as â€Å"separate but equal† from the civil rights movement, which the Supreme Court consequently declared is â€Å"inherently unequal. Although the circumstances of the Brown v. Board of Education â€Å"separate but equal† ruling were different than today’s gay marriage situation, both issues have the same underlying principle. How so? By creating a separate category for same-sex marriage, civil unions are essentially a separate class below the rest of us; a class unfit for marriage - a class for those who are â€Å"unequal† to the rest of us. Marriage and civil unions are fundamentally unequal, and this is clearly unconstitutional, as is shown in the Equal Protection Clause ofShow MoreRelatedThe Case Against Passing a Law or Bill that Would Allow Gay Marriage880 Words   |  4 Pageswhile not stating any specific examples, would allow for businesses to deny their services to anyone who does not align with their religious beliefs, and the Kansas bill would do the same but also specifically addresses beliefs regarding traditional marriage. Both bills, and many others, have caused an uproar of many different people who either support or oppose the passing o f the bills into law. Although religious freedom is an important value and should be upheld, these laws are using it as a licenseRead MoreShould Gay Marriage Be Recognized?1692 Words   |  7 PagesKrisha McCoy Final Paper August 25, 2014 SHOULD GAY MARRIAGES BE RECOGNIZED ACROSS STATES There are many debates going on about whether gay-marriage should be recognized by all United States. Why is it that some states ban gay-marriage but others allow it? Why is it that some states declare that a ban on gay-marriage is unconstitutional yet others say it is not? Why is it that some states recognize gay-marriages from other states but others do not? These are some questions thatRead MoreGay Marriage Should Not Be Condemned1108 Words   |  5 PagesIntroduction There has been heated debate’s concerning gay marriage’s in the world. Some people support gay marriage while others do not. Gay marriage is a marital union that involves two adults of the same gender. 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