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Same sex marriage has been an issue in our government since the beginning of time; not only has this been a concern in politics, but a concern of basic human rights.
Although politics should not be involved in this matter, as they have never involved in the matter of heterosexual marriage, they are. The governments biased opinions dictate the happiness, comfort, and well-being of the civilians living in any given area. The sad truth is that there will always be a hateful agenda against a community (specifically LGBT), whether it is in politics, laws, or even other regular people.
Regardless of any struggles anyone may be facing, minorities have always gotten it worse; and those who are homosexual, bisexual, or transgender have inevitably been given the short end of the stick in society mainly due to the fact that everyone believes that it is their “choice”.
Sexuality is something that a majority of people struggle with, even celebrities, artists, and public figures; when in actuality it should not be an uphill battle for anyone, a burden such as this should only bother anyone who believes that sexuality is more important than basic human rights. The rumor of sexuality being a conscious choice that individuals make everyday has been proven false countless times, not that it should matter if it wad a choice or not. “During the 1990’s evidence was found that a gene could be the root cause of homosexuality. It was thought that the X chromosome, which is passed from the mother to the son, carried the variability that accounted for becoming gay.
More recently, both the X and Y chromosomes have been investigated to determine the causes of homosexuality. The Y chromosome is passed from the father to the son and it is this Y chromosome that determined the sex of the baby. All of these studies have been successful to the extent that they have found genetic factors to be the cause of homosexuality in fifty to sixty percent of the populations studied.” (Schwartz, Allan. Being Gay: A Life Style Choice? Dr. Schwartz’s Weblog, 2018).
Countless doctors, such as Allan Schwartz PhD., did not allow any personal or religious views cloud their judgment; these doctors used facts and science to prove that most people in the LGBT community did not make a conscious decision and that they are gay or bisexual based on genetics. The year of 2015 was the year of change and recognition in the LGBT community. President Barack Obama allowed for the gay community to take one step closer to advancement by making gay marriage officially legal in all 50 states of America. A lot of people felt as if they were finally heard by a public figure, especially someone who gave them a voice within the government. This in a way proved what a lot of people already knew; love is love and it is okay. Artists such as Elton John, Sara Ramirez, Lauren Jauregui, etc., who are either openly gay or bisexual made it very clear how happy they were when someone in government did something that constituted their very being; thus allowing for them to feel as if someone was listening. Lauren Jauregui specifically wrote a letter to the people who voted the current president of the US, Donald J. Trump, into office. Jauregui openly disclosed her sexuality in the letter stating “I am a bisexual cuban-american and I am so proud of it”. (Influencer and Celebrities Come Out for Equality in 2017, The Human Rights Campaign, 2018).
Public figures coming out about their sexuality should never be viewed as an overshare of personal information, but as a way for “regular people” who are not in the spotlight, to feel comfortable enough within themselves to come out and be content, regardless of opinions from others who should not be heard or even considered relevant. Although there are positive examples of why everyone should be prideful with themselves, there are still grossly hateful individuals who seem to make it their mission in life to spread unnecessary negativity. A clerk in Louisville, Kentucky by the name of Kimberly Davis refused to marry a couple simply because they were a same sex couple. This clear representation of bigotry and anti-LGBT is not only discouraging to those who have not come forward regarding their preferences, but it is also highly illegal. Even though the 53 year old has been divorced and remarried several times, she claims that two men marrying each other would be disrespectful to a higher being, and gave the same reason when asked who gave her and the office authority to not issue marriage licenses, she replied “under the authority of God”. Davis spent five days in jail and continued to hold her position as the clerk of Rowan county upon her release. She recently lost the re-election bid on Tuesday by over 700 votes. “Kim Davis, the Republican incumbent, was defeated by Democrat Elwood Caudill Jr. in the election for clerk of Rowan County in northeastern Kentucky. Caudill won with 4,210 votes, or 54 percent, to 3,566, or 46 percent, for Davis.” (Kentucky clerk jailed over gay marriage licenses loses re-election bid, Associated Press, November 7 2018).
It is people and situations like these that cause dismay; thus preventing love from flourishing like it should. Nevertheless, love seems to be winning and people seem to be changing their minds in regards to same sex marriage. “Kentucky voters in 2004 overwhelmingly approved an amendment to the state Constitution defining marriage as between one man and one woman. But in June 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the 14th amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees same-sex couples have the right to marry. The ruling overturned same-sex marriage bans nationwide.” (Kentucky clerk jailed over gay marriage licenses loses re-election bid, Associated Press, November 7 2018). Statistics have been showing how the public is finally opening their eyes a little bit more in the subject of same sex marriage, proving that society has shifted to a more open mindset when it comes to sexuality. As previously mentioned on page one, last line of paragraph one, sexuality should never be thought of as more important than the well being of an individual. The government has been inevitably involved in the lives of those within the LGBT community; but the gay community has been more involved in the government since 2012 and it has been paying off; hence gay marriage being legalized in all 50 states on 2015.
According to the NBC News Exit Poll, the gay community made up 76% of the democratic party and 22% of the republican party. However, this has shifted because as of the year 2018, LGBT make up 82% of the democratic party and 17% of the republican party. “The percentage of LGBT voters who identify as Democrats has gone up over the last few election cycles, according to the NBC News Exit Poll.” (Fitzsimons, Tim. Record LGBT Support for Democrats in Midterms, NBC News Poll Exit Shows. November 8 2018). It is made very obvious that citizens have been taking much more interest in the government, especially in the US, primarily due to the fact that they now feel as if they have a voice and are able to express their thoughts and feelings and personal opinions, as republicans have for so many years. The fear of a hate crime still exists, but LGBT has become a lot more brave. The gay community come in only second to African-Americans in the Democratic party. Some might argue that this comparison is because these two communities are not too different for each other and have faced more discrimination than most.
Therefore, they vote for democratic parties and affiliate themselves with them in order to see change in their society. The governments involvement is not all bad, however; considering the fact that they have always been the more “fair” option (if that is even possible in government). Democrats primarily believe that people should be treated as such and that civil rights issues should be the primary focus in order to move forward as a union and for everyone to feel included, heard, and even loved. The republican party on the other hand, believes that a marriage should remain between and man and a woman, because anything else would be “disrespectful to the sanctity of marriage”. A majority of modern day republicans are very selective with their beliefs for example, they consider same sex marriage and abomination yet it states in the bible the divorce is also a big no-no and republicans like Kim Davis pretend as if it does not even say that. They get divorced and break countless other rules in the bible and not only turn a blind eye from hate crimes towards gay people and other minorities, but believe that most of them are committed in “Gods name”.
To defame God’s character like that is not only immoral, but it is a way for those people to not have to come out and announce that the crimes they commit are done solely because they are homophobic. “Through cultural heterosexism, homosexuality is largely hidden in American society and, when publicly recognized, is usually condemned of stigmatized. This alteration between invisibility and hostilities readily apparent in four major societal institutions; religion, the law, psychiatry and psychology, and mass media. Heterosexism is defined here as an ideological system that denies, denigrates and stigmatizes any non-heterosexual form of behavior, identity, relationship, or community.” (Herek, Gregory M. Hate Crimes: Confronting Violence Against Lesbians and Gay men. SAGE Publications, 1991). Even in 1991 there were those who came to the realization that the social stigma surrounding gay and lesbian men and women was not okay. 1998 was not that long ago however, it was still a time where the gay community was largely discriminated against. Modern day prejudice very much still exists but not as much as it did in a time where the democratic party had not yet voted to make all love legal. The ideology of republicanism states that none of this was ever okay and it never will be, but as long as the percentage of people that make up the democratic party continue to drop and people are persistent on voting individuals like barack Obama into office, the future of America may have a fighting chance. The previous statement is not only a stance in politics or a way to vouch for Obama, but a way for others to succumb to the realization that there are actually people who care about minorities such as the LGBT community. The gay community has undoubtably faced a great deal of bigotry and discrimination throughout the years; and the republican party still supports the injustice to this day.
However, the democratic party has always been there to fight the injustices by changing laws to assist the LGBT community in feeling comfortable within its society. Laws will, hopefully, continue to change for the better and hopefully one day, both parties in government will agree that discrimination against their own citizens is childish to say the least. In 2015 the government finally made a positive decision regarding a community who has always felt as if they did not have a voice. Instead they believed that by remaining silent they would remain safe and it didn't matter if they were unheard or if they to hide affection with their partners, because quiet guaranteed safety; right? Statistics and stories of hate crimes, including murders, proved that the republican party sought out LGBT members and bullied them and even killed them. People like Kim Davis are the reason that queer people’s heart drop when they wish to do something as special as get married. The uphill battles they have had to face their whole life is not okay in any way shape or form, because at the end of the day love is love.
Same Sex Marriage Essay. (2021, Apr 14). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/same-sex-marriage-17-essay
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