Jake McQuiggan
Third Paper
It is just
Marriage
Growing
up, we are told to “treat others the way you want to be treated”. Unfortunately
as we get older, we begin to hate what we don’t understand. Gay marriage has
been a huge topic for the past few years as homosexuals fight for their right
to marry. The federal government has passed laws to prohibit gays from marrying
and from receiving marriage benefits. I think this is wrong and goes against homosexual’s
civil rights.
The
Defense of Marriage Act, or DOMA, (Pub. L. 104-199, Sept. 21, 1996, 110 Stat.
2419) is a federal law that denies federal recognition of same-sex marriages
and authorizes states to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages licensed in
other states. DOMA was passed out of the fear that a lawsuit in Hawaii would
force that state to recognize same-sex marriages. Under the U.S. Constitution's
Full Faith and Credit Clause (Article IV, Section 1), states are expected to
recognize the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other
state. Therefore, Congress was alarmed at the prospect of a gay or lesbian
couple being married in Hawaii and then going to another state and expecting
that state to recognize them as legally married. In addition, Congress did not
want to grant same-sex couples the same federal benefits that are given to
heterosexual couples who are legally married.1.Basically, the government has
not banned marriage but it has not legalized it either. The DOMA act specifically
targets homosexuals in a cruel way.
The
text of DOMA is very brief and contains only two provisions. The first
provision states that no state, territory, or Indian tribe shall be required to
legally recognize a "relationship between persons of the same sex that is
treated as a marriage under the laws of another state, territory, or Indian
tribe." This language tells these jurisdictions that the Full Faith and
Credit Clause has no application to same sex marriages.1.
This means states legally do not
have to allow gay marriage. I think that either gay marriage needs to be legal
in the country as a whole or not at all. Having it legal in individual states
will cause issues if people want to move from the state in which they were
married. I also feel like it divides the country and causes tension between the
states. Marriage between heterosexual couples is nationally recognized wherever
you go. Having gay marriage be recognized on only on a state level is not fair.
It makes it so that gay marriage is less significant than that of a traditional
marriage.
The second provision directs the
federal government to follow a definition of the word marriage that means
"only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and
wife." Likewise, the word spouse is defined as a "person of the
opposite sex who is a husband or a wife." These definitions are meant to
preclude a same-sex couple that has been married in a state from being eligible
for federal benefits such as married Income Tax status and Social Security
survivor benefits. In effect, DOMA bars federal recognition of same-sex
marriages through the use of these definitions.1.
DOMA
also denies homosexuals benefits that heterosexual spouses would receive such
as income tax and social security. This includes gay couples that are married
in states that have legalized gay marriage. It is very idiotic that gay couples
can only be married in specific states and do not even receive benefits after
they are married. Being married entitles the couple to receive benefits and to
be recognized by the government. If the government would allow them to marry
but not allow them the same benefits are straight couples, then what was the
point of letting them marry in the first place?
With
the growing support of gay marriage, I do not understand why the government
will not go ahead and legalize it once and for all. Over the past eight years,
every U.S. state has increased in its support for same-sex marriage, with an
average increase of 13.6 percent, and if the public opinion trends continue at
the same pace, eight additional states will be above 50 percent support by the
end of next year.2. I think the people
of this country know that eventually gay marriage will be legalized and have
accepted that .A LifeWay Research study released in March found that nearly
two-thirds of Americans believe legalized same-sex marriage in the U.S. is
inevitable.2.
Knowing
someone personally who is gay or lesbian appears to be an important factor in
how Americans feel about the issue of same-sex marriage. While two-thirds of
Americans with a close relationship to someone who is gay or lesbian think
same-sex marriage should be legal, most without such a close relationship don't
think so.3. Those who are not close to homosexuals do not understand what they
go through and how they can be treated. Though the gay marriage debate has been
in the media for years, most of the people who oppose gay marriage refuse to
listen to the argument of homosexuals. I think most people practice a religion
that causes them to disagree with the concept of gay marriage. Until a change
can happen within the church, a change cannot happen in the people. I think
some people may oppose gay marriage to appease the people around them such as
family and friends.
The poll
suggests the extent to which people's views have changed. Thirty-three percent
of Americans who now think same-sex couples should be allowed to legally marry
say they once held the opposite view. When asked why they changed their minds,
one in five volunteers that personally knowing someone who is gay or lesbian
was the deciding factor (20 percent). Other reasons mentioned include being
more tolerant now (17 percent), more educated now (17 percent), or that is the
modern way of thinking about the issue (12 percent).3.
Changing
of the times and education has really helped people to see the bigger picture
and support what is right. As people befriend gays they realize they are not
bad people and view them as equal. The times are changing people are not as old
fashioned as they used to be. Within the
past hundred years, African Americans and women have gotten the rights that
they disserve. This has helped change the times and spread more tolerance among
the people.
Overall
53 percent of Americans think it should be legal for same-sex couples to marry,
while 39 percent say it should not be legal.3. The government should listen to
the voice of the people. Since the majority of the country agrees with gay
marriage, the government should have no choice but to get rid of DOMA.
Homosexual
couples want the same rights and benefits as that of a heterosexual couple. But
only the people can spark a change within the government to make things right.
Getting rid of DOMA would bring peace to the people and settle the dispute that
has split a nation. As the people change so does the government, and the time
for change is now.
Source cited
Poll analysis by Sarah Dutton, Jennifer De Pinto, Anthony
Salvanto and Fred Backus
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