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Same-sex marriage: Civil right vs. states' rights
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Equality Not Gay Rights
Just last week President Obama said in an interview with ABC's Robin Roberts: "I think gay couples should be able to get married." This and some other comments spurred a heated debate across the country of if Gay Rights' time has come. Should gay and lesbian couples be allowed to marry? The media and many others are reading the issue in all the wrong ways. This issue isn't about Gay Rights, it's about equality. When the Civil Rights movement was working it's way through Washington DC we didn't call it Black Rights. These are civil rights that should be afforded to all people of America. By our Constitution's Bill of Rights we have a right to Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. For many Americans a great deal of happiness is gained by becoming married to the man or woman that you love.
Fox News and many other media outlets began running stories questioning what political stance the President was taking. He was called a flip-flopper on the issue, and was accused of waging a war on marriage. Many tried to make this out as a bad issue for Barack Obama. I disagree. Anytime the President of the United States of America comes out in support of freedom and equality for it's people is a good thing and it should be celebrated.
This issue goes beyond Gay Rights and at the most fundamental level it defines who we are as a country. We preach freedom and justice for all but we don't practice it. Largely the factors that prevent us from progress on the Civil Rights aspect are religious convictions held by lawmakers. A Gallup poll recently put the nation at 50/50 in support of Gay Marriage. However lawmakers nationwide at state and federal levels have done anything but put forth legislation that would reflect these numbers. States like North Carolina have specifically banned Gay's from marrying in their state. This is not right. Also in our constitution it clearly states a separation of Church and State. Make no mistake that our founding fathers held deep religious convictions. However they knew at the time that no ruler should be able to force it's beliefs on people. Because one man or woman feels they have a religious obligation to be against gay marriage does not give them any right to pass legislation that would forever bar me from binding myself legally to someone I love.
It's not about marriage, it's about equality. I should have the same rights that a straight couple in love have. There are same-sex couples who have been together, going through a "phase", for 40 years and it's sad to think that if one of them dies then the other is not entitled to make any decisions regarding their burial, their estate, etc. The person that knows them best, cannot make the best decisions for them.
Barack Obama ran in 2008 on a campaign slogan of Change and Hope. In 2012 it seems he's running on a campaign slogan of Forward, moving the country forward that is. Mitt Romney runs on the slogan of Believe in America. Why can't our nation do all of that, why can't we all have hope and believe in America's ability to change the status quo by moving forward with legislation that would afford gay couples all the same rights and responsibilities that others currently have.“Let us be shy no longer,” Ronald Reagan encouraged. “Let us go to our strength. Let us offer hope. Let us tell the world that a new age is not only possible but probable.” Americans of all races and all creeds and all preferences deserve the same rights. I want a kinder, gentler nation. One that doesn't discriminate against someone for who they are or what they do.
Fox News and many other media outlets began running stories questioning what political stance the President was taking. He was called a flip-flopper on the issue, and was accused of waging a war on marriage. Many tried to make this out as a bad issue for Barack Obama. I disagree. Anytime the President of the United States of America comes out in support of freedom and equality for it's people is a good thing and it should be celebrated.
This issue goes beyond Gay Rights and at the most fundamental level it defines who we are as a country. We preach freedom and justice for all but we don't practice it. Largely the factors that prevent us from progress on the Civil Rights aspect are religious convictions held by lawmakers. A Gallup poll recently put the nation at 50/50 in support of Gay Marriage. However lawmakers nationwide at state and federal levels have done anything but put forth legislation that would reflect these numbers. States like North Carolina have specifically banned Gay's from marrying in their state. This is not right. Also in our constitution it clearly states a separation of Church and State. Make no mistake that our founding fathers held deep religious convictions. However they knew at the time that no ruler should be able to force it's beliefs on people. Because one man or woman feels they have a religious obligation to be against gay marriage does not give them any right to pass legislation that would forever bar me from binding myself legally to someone I love.
It's not about marriage, it's about equality. I should have the same rights that a straight couple in love have. There are same-sex couples who have been together, going through a "phase", for 40 years and it's sad to think that if one of them dies then the other is not entitled to make any decisions regarding their burial, their estate, etc. The person that knows them best, cannot make the best decisions for them.
Barack Obama ran in 2008 on a campaign slogan of Change and Hope. In 2012 it seems he's running on a campaign slogan of Forward, moving the country forward that is. Mitt Romney runs on the slogan of Believe in America. Why can't our nation do all of that, why can't we all have hope and believe in America's ability to change the status quo by moving forward with legislation that would afford gay couples all the same rights and responsibilities that others currently have.“Let us be shy no longer,” Ronald Reagan encouraged. “Let us go to our strength. Let us offer hope. Let us tell the world that a new age is not only possible but probable.” Americans of all races and all creeds and all preferences deserve the same rights. I want a kinder, gentler nation. One that doesn't discriminate against someone for who they are or what they do.
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