Same-Sex Marriage

Conflict has been surrounding the debate of whether same-sex marriage should be granted to gay couples as homosexuality is considered “unacceptable” or “wrong” for many. The majority of public opinions tend to view same sex marriage negatively and reject the idea of allowing homosexual couples to wed each other. It was determined by law that people of the same gender should not be given the opportunity to marry because it does not follow the moral standard of allowing only a man and woman to wed. On the contrary, those who oppose gay couples due to their lifestyle are people who do not factor in that anyone should be allowed to love whoever they choose regardless of gender.

Marriage to most people is defined by a man and a woman. It is the sacred bond that connects the significant other to you. It is seen as the union that connects parents to their children. As the population within the homosexual community increases, the current situation will only fall in favor for gay and lesbian unity. The presence of gay and lesbian people has risen constantly over time and has led many to protest for the fair treatment of gay people. It has attracted a lot of scrutiny due to the fact that the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) essentially allows only couples of opposite genders to marry each other while couples of the same gender are not allowed that same opportunity. Former United States President Bill Clinton was responsible for passing DOMA during his presidency and as a result initiated a zero tolerance policy towards same-sex marriage.

With the effects of DOMA being enforced, people all across the country felt that gay people were being discriminated against. Activists and supporters of gay rights began to rally together in an effort to prove that gay people deserve equality. Supporters continued to confront and retaliate DOMA through protesting and sending messages to convince the government to retract it. Seeing the amount of support for gay marriage political figures were pressured to act upon the situation.

What makes the topic of same-sex marriage so interesting is how society shifted its view of homosexuality. Much of the public opinion converted
their standpoint which came into fruition at an instantaneous pace. There were many powerful politicians that refused to integrate gay marriage as a right. Both Democratic and Republican parties did not support it at all preceding last year and social-conservative leaders were not worried of homosexual aspects being a part of marriage.(Drehle, Web) Even as the federal law has eased up, individual states are given the choice of accepting or denying same-sex marriage at their own discretion.

Although society is still rather oppressive towards homosexuality, recent times have provided hope for same sex couples as support for same sex marriage continues to increase rapidly. Some states have reversed their same-sex marriage policy to which they have elected to embrace same-sex marriage by passing laws to allow it. Those who oppose same-sex marriage may argue that giving homosexuals the right to marry will deteriorate the social structures that we have in place, but that is only discriminating the gay population by denying them standard constitutional rights. Even President Bill Clinton recently stated publicly that he was wrong for passing DOMA and has apologized profusely as he sees just how it impacts gay people.

Religious groups and organizations, namely Christians and Catholics, are the biggest opposition towards the legalization of same sex marriage. The majority have considerable hate towards the idea of allowing people of the same gender to love and are heavily influenced by the belief that God does not accept homosexuality. “WHEN PEOPLE talk about the institution of marriage, they often wax nostalgic. They think, and often say, that until very recently marriage was a lifelong commitment by one man and one woman, sanctified by God and the state, for the purposes of companionship and the rearing of children.”

They adamantly stick by the notion that the institution of marriage is defined solely by a man and woman. This is completely unreasonable as this the belief of a religion that does not apply to everyone. People who faithfully follow their religion treat it as an absolute law separate from what is morally correct to others.

“The various concerns that religious groups use, as reasons to prohibit homosexual marriage, are in my opinion weak and can actually be turned
around and made into arguments in support of same-sex marriage.” (Baker, n.p.) They cannot see beyond what their religion dictates as correct and are oblivious to political issues pertaining to society. Religion is relatively bias considering that it was created by man to communicate the testaments of an omnipotent and omnipresent force.

Religion throughout decades has evolved and should adjust in order to conform with society. Coinciding religion with same-sex marriage is a bad idea partly because religion branches out in different ways. It is often debated by churches as to whether they should accept same-sex marriage; generally based on the state of law it is up to them to marry gay couples.

Legalizing same-sex marriage will not disrupt the functionality of society nor will it affect heterosexual marriages. The belief of allowing same-sex marriage is that it will corrupt the premise of family values that are so woven into the fabric of our society.

Allowing gay couples the right to marry would be beneficial to the economy. It will supplement the desire of planning a wedding with Marriage would encourage spending which would in turn help boost the number of jobs available. Potential jobs could include cater, bakery, restaurants, licensing, and other sorts of businesses that thrive on marriage. Many gay couples would not hesitate to spend money in preparation of a potential marriage which most people consider an important chapter in life. Numerous job opportunities become available as a result of same-sex marriage being realized.

The Constitutional Budget Office found that budget could be improved slightly as an effect of legalizing same-sex marriage in every state. The federal government can potentially see a $1 billion increase each year for the next ten years as well as an increase in tax revenues of $500 million to $700 million each year. In addition, spending on federal assistance programs would decrease by roughly $100 million to $200 million per year because of same-sex marriage. (Covert, Web) Same-sex marriage has been projected to increase financial gains and provide some stimulus if they are recognized by the federal government. From an economic perspective there is little doubt that same-sex marriage will help spark a much needed.

In terms of receiving benefits, same-sex couples should be eligible for the same that heterosexual married couples tend to receive. Since same-sex marriage is being accepted by states during the past years, the benefits to which same-sex couples are entitled to were rather limited. The eligibility to receive federal benefits for same-sex couples varied by state and often times were (Although the ruling by the Supreme Court states that legally married same-sex couples are given the right by federal law to obtain benefits such as taxes and pension, gay couples are required to follow state tax laws depending on their residency.

This affects their financial rights because each state has varying laws. (Hawthorne, Web) “This is particularly a problem for residents of the 27 states that have a state income, estate or inheritance tax and do not treat same-sex marriage, domestic partnerships or civil unions the same as heterosexual marriage for tax purposes.” (Hawthorne, Web) Many states that accept same-sex marriage are providing unequal benefits to married same-sex couples compared to heterosexual couples.

Progress certainly is being made when it comes to achieving equal rights for gay people, but there are still a lot of political related issues that need to be addressed before same-sex marriage can truly be considered acceptable. Discrimination against the gay community continues to exist throughout states even after society’s attitude being in favor of them; there are still a large portion of people who simply hate or refuse to accept gay people because of who they are. Same-sex marriage being legalized in a number of states is a victory for equal rights, but gay couples should be wary of the fact that not everyone is at terms with it reforming society to compensate for gay rights.

As it stands right now, the gay population has a very strong hold on society and is progressing quite rapidly through the barriers that keep them from being treated equally. Gay people are heavily discriminated against and its difficult to understand why they are being treated in such a way. Allowing gay couples to marry would not pose an issue as most people might think; it’s been determined that same sex marriage would in fact have a positive impact to . They continue to expand which is a reason why society has become aware of its presence and the discrimination that they are faced with. Due to such overwhelming support for gay rights, the government is constantly facing pressure to amend the laws that prohibit gay couples from getting married. With this mentioned, same-sex marriage should be legalized in an effort to further advance equal rights for all people.