It seems that LGBT rights can only go so far as to saw acceptance among people with misconceptions, without gaining free reign to marry in peace.
According to a recent declaration released by Jeb Bush, there is still not a constitutional right envisioned for same-sex marriage. The Supreme Court is set to decide on the matter next month. Bush is also being very conspicuous regarding his view on this matter, calling traditional marriage “a sacrament”, subtly implying that gay marriage could be a threat to that.
Jeb Bush seems to be on the side of the conservatives with his assertion, as Philly Schlafly, a conservative icon, sees gay marriage as part of a desire to destroy Christianity. Most religions don’t recognize this type of union as a legitimate one, which somehow justifies the church’s position.
Also, there’s centuries of history which instill the opinions among conservatives. Throughout human evolution, marriage has been known as the union of a man and woman. Even the ancient Greeks, known to tolerate gay couples, didn’t allow them to marry.
But still history is a matter of the past. We live in the 21st century and human behavior has changed dramatically. Now, relationships are seen as diversified behavior, not especially concentrated on heterosexual couples. Homosexuality gained popularity among individuals, which calls for an important improvement in vision and societal rules.
Through marriage, human relationships evade the privacy sector and land into administrative and social grounds. By definition, the right to privacy means “freedom from unwarranted governmental intrusion into matters fundamentally affecting the person as the decision to bear or beget a child”, as Justice William Brennan once wrote. This is very much true if it weren’t for the state’s connection to the institution of marriage. Privacy, in this case, remains relative. It is the right to choose, to have and to hold without limits, but if papers are involved, the state still has a strong word to say about it.
This is the reason why gay marriage is so controversial, because it speaks in terms of human rights to privacy, bumping into political or social views over the way the world should act, look and behave. When freedom meets state regulations, cracks appear and visions separate, degenerating into long debates and delayed measures.
Same-sex marriage is still stigmatized from the society. A few weeks ago, the Supreme Court has heard about consolidations of the petitions sent by four couples, seeking release from same-sex marriage ban. The petitions came from Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee. The results were equal to zero. Ohio passed a law stating that “only a union between one man and one woman may be a marriage recognized by the state”.
It is very hard for people to change their fundamental perspectives on life. It is even harder if those changes strongly contradict some so-called laws of nature, but as time passes by, so evolves our understanding of life in general and delicate matters in particular.
This being said, we have three dozen states with already legalized same-sex marriage. It’s a first step that sounds good, steady and promising. For the big stake, there’s big time lobby and efforts implied, in order to make the world understand that diversity is not such a bad thing. And eventually, maybe we shouldn’t make all that fuss about a signature on a white piece of paper. Gay or heterosexual, love is all that matters.
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Samanta says
If love is all that matters, what is stopping a person marrying a dog or a cat or a fish? You cannot say that one person doers not love his dog or cat.