Should Same Sex be Legalized

Should Same-Sex Marriage be Legalized?
Introduction to Ethics & Social Responsibility
SOC 120
Should Same-Sex Marriage be Legalized?
For many years, the debate of should same-sex marriage be legalized has been a topic unsettled. I believe that same-sex marriage should be legalized because not allowing same-sex marriage is discrimination against minorities, protected by the constitution, and is not a sin according to Bible verses. Those against the idea argue homosexuality is a sin, marriage should be between a man and a woman, and same-sex marriage will weaken the institution of marriage. So which side is correct? And what side are you on? This essay will provide you with the facts about same-sex marriage so that you will be able to answer these questions and form an educated opinion on the topic.
When arguing if homosexuality is wrong or right, religious arguments often quote scriptures. The problem with this is that the scriptures being quote have more to the meaning than homosexuality. For example, in Genesis 2:18-25 (NIV), when God created Adam and Eve, one of the biggest sayings is that “God created Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve.” The first problem with using this saying is that it is true God created male and female, as this is the way you reproduce. The verse is not indicating that God created Adam and Eve as husband and wife. Another argument from this verse is that “God created our body’s to be used in a certain way, and we should not use them in any other way.” Well, God created our mouth and ears for communications, our hands to touch with. What about the deaf and mute community that, either born this way or due to an illness, is now this way? This community now uses their hands, intended to touch with not communicate with, for communicating in sign language. Although our hands were not made for this purpose, it is ok with society, and this wasn’t God’s design either. What about the passages that negatively mention “tax collectors”? We know that this is not in reference to our government or tax collectors of “all time”, but the “tax collectors” during that time frame for frequent corrupt and cheated people. Genesis 19 “God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah” people say because of homosexuality. This is not true, in Ezekiel, it tells us they were “arrogant, overfed, and unconcerned” and “did not help the poor and needy”. The problem with the Bible verse when using them for argument purposes is people take a certain sentence or phrase to apply it towards their argument instead of the entire story and what it’s really about. People state that “we should not question the Bible”, but what about for 1 Chronicle 16:30 and Psalm 104:5 when questioned by the great Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. for slavery? And if we should still live as the Bible states without question, why are we not listening to Deut. 25:5-6; Gen. 38:8 where men are required to sleep with his dead brother’s wife; or in Deut. 22:28-29 that women were forced to marry their rapists? The Bible also quotes that “women must be silent” or “not a head of man” yet women are now pastors, CEO’s and in charge of men. If we as American’s are holding on the “the way it is in the Book”, why are we letting go of some things, but not others? Shouldn’t we be all for one and one for all? As religious people quote these scripts towards homosexuals, they tend to forget about Romans 13:8-10 that mentions to “love your neighbor as yourself”. Another interesting passage is 1 Tim. 4:1-6, that is clearly stating some will abandon faith and follow teachings of the demons. Some of these from hypocritical liars that will forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth. For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, because it is consecrated by the word of God and Prayer. Luke 6:43-44, Jesus says “No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognized by its own fruit.” With the arguments about “scripture being against homosexuality”, it does not clearly state that it is a sin, and has just as many passages that state it is ok. Now that we’ve discussed scripture, what are the reasons for and against same-sex marriage?
I want to start off by introducing a website called “Family Research Council”. On this website, there is actually an article with “ten science-based arguments against same-sex marriage” (Family Research Council, n.d.). The first argument is that “children hunger for their biological parents” (Family Research Council, n.d.). I feel this reason is not a valid reason to stop same-sex marriage. This could be a reason for not allowing adoption, but for marriage? So what about heterosexual marriages that can’t have children? Should we stop heterosexual marriages for the same reason? There are two inspirational children who grew up adopted by same-sex marriages that speak out and say they have normal lives. 12 year-old, Evann Orleck-Jetter (mediagrrl9, 2009) and 19 year-old Zack Wahls (divulgate, 2011) and they tell their story of how normal life is growing up. Now critics may say that Evann only being 12 hasn’t fully grown up yet, or that she was force to read off her paper she’s reading. Maybe critics are right, but how do you argue the success of Zack? He has excellent SAT scores and owns his own business. The next two topics are two in one, “children need fathers” and “children need mothers” (Family Research Council, n.d.). While I agree with these two quotes, I also feel more so that you shouldn’t stop a marriage based on these facts alone. What if the same-sex couple does not want to have kids? These two topics would no longer be an issue, so why stop them from getting married? What about heterosexual marriages where the father leaves the kids. There are so many single-parent homes today that don’t have a mom or a dad and the parent has to play the role of both. This can be the result of death, or a parent that abandoned the family for any given reasons. My best friend is currently raising her child because the father felt he “wasn’t ready to raise a kid”. She is raising this child alone and he is growing up to be the best kid, and top of his class. What can a single mom raise a kid, but not two moms? Reason four and five “Evidence on parenting by same-sex couples is inadequate” and “evidence suggests children raised by homosexuals are more likely to experience gender and sexual disorders” (Family Research Council, n.d.). I’m once again going to refer back to Zack, as he grew up fine and had adequate parenting and never experienced “gender disorders”. The next two reasons listed are “Same-sex marriage would undercut the norm of sexual fidelity within marriage” and “same-sex marriage would further isolate marriage from its procreative purpose” (Family Research Council, n.d.). You cannot blame that same-sex marriage is the cause of cheating. There are many heterosexual marriages that end in divorce because of cheating spouses. According to Family Court Judge Judy, she married two men that “were together for decades who couldn’t love each other more if they were a heterosexual couple, than they are a good couple. If you are a good citizen, pay your taxes, and work, you should have the rights and responsibilities of everyone else” (Gentile, 2012). I also disagree that you cannot say that same-sex marriage will isolate marriage from its purpose. Many heterosexuals now get married for the wrong reasons. I know of many couples who marry an alien just so she can become a citizen. There are also many people who will marry military personnel so they get the military benefits, and the servicemen get the extra pay for “being married”. These are heterosexuals who are listed in these examples. The final point I will argue is the last reason of “women and marriage domesticate men” (Family Research Council, n.d.). One cannot say that because someone is married to the same-sex that he or she will not earn as much money.
Other reasons that I’ve heard for denying same-sex marriage during the argument are things like it would “weaken the definition and respect for the institution of marriage”. I’m not sure how same-sex marriage will weaken the definition. A marriage should be between two people who love each other. “Massachusetts, which became the first state to legalize gay marriage on May 17, 2004, had the lowest divorce rate in the country in 2008. Its divorce rate decline 21% between 2003 and 2008” ("Did You Know?," n.d). If same-sex marriage will weaken marriage, then how is the divorce rate dropping after allowing same-sex marriage? “Marriage is a privilege, not a right” In case why is it a “privilege” for two heterosexuals marrying that aren’t financially stable? “People should not have their tax dollars spend on something they don’t believe in” There are many things are congress does that many don’t support, but we still have to deal with it. Not everyone agrees with the President of the US, or voted for him, but yet our tax dollars still pays for his salary; furthermore, homosexuals are tax payers too, so why should they have to pay taxes for benefits they cannot get by being denied marriage? “Gay Marriage could potentially lead down a ‘slippery slope’ giving people in polygamous, incestuous, bestial, and other nontraditional relationships the right to marry” ("Did You Know?," n.d) . Blaming polygamous or incestuous on same-sex marriage is like saying that people are homeless because the rich make too much money. A reason that same-sex marriage should be legalized is because denying this right is a violation of religious freedom. The claim that homosexuality is a sin is the main reason for fighting against same-sex marriage; however, the First Amendment of the Constitution states that a person’s religious views, or lack thereof, must be protected. So if homosexuals are sinning, “their lack of religious views” is still protected by the First Amendment. If one believes in God, and a school allows for a moment of silence, the atheist has to have this moment of silence as well. Although the atheist does not believe in God, he cannot take your believe from you; so why should one take the believe of equal rights away from homosexual based on their believes? If a heterosexual and homosexual work for the same company that offer great medical, health, and retirement benefits, and the heterosexual has known his spouse for a year and then got married while the homosexual has known his significant other for 15 years but cannot get married, why can the heterosexual couple who’s known each other for only a year enjoy the benefits of the company, but the homosexual who’s known each other for 15 years not be able to benefit? What if there is an emergency situation and one person is sent to critical care unit. His partner may lose visitation rights because it’s for “immediate family members” only. Also by denying same-sex marriage, I feel this would be discrimination. If an employer is not allowed to ask age, sex, religion, race, marital status, or sexual orientation due to discrimination laws, then why is it that the legal system can deny you marriage privileges because of sexual orientation? Denying a homosexual the right to marry is no different than denying an African American the right into the same restroom as a Caucasian, or a Hispanic the right to marry an African American. It’s all discrimination. One of the biggest benefits would be the number of children without families and living in orphanages would decrease as homosexuals would increase adoptions. This can be argued as a reason not to allow same-sex marriage, but why would you rather have a kid grow up with no loving parents, than having them grow up with two loving parents, who happen to be the same sex? I am 28 years-old, and a homosexual. After hiding my life of who I am, and afraid to be who I am because I was embarrassed, afraid I would let my parents down, and grew up being gay is wrong, I have never been happier when I started to finally except who I am as a person and had the support and love of other homosexuals. This is when I realized that “God knew you before you were born”. He was the one who crated us. Don’t hate me because I’m gay; this is who I am, I’m not making you live this lifestyle or agree with it, I’m asking you to let me live mine. A heterosexual might not believe in “homosexuality”, or believe that it is a “sin”, but that’s his religious right and believe. A homosexual, may be just as religious, and believe that “homosexuality” is not a sin. Two religious people of the same faith believe in two different things, but believe in the same God. According to Mosser, this is an example of relativism (Mosser, 2010, p. 22). I feel that both parties should agree to disagree, and neither should stop the other from his or her feelings. Finally, we should discuss the truth about homosexuals. Rev. Gary Hall, Dean of the Washington National Cathedral, says it best that “homophobia” and “heterosexism” are sins (Hall, 2013). Many disagree with this claim; I however, support it 100%. As mentioned earlier, God stated it is a sin to judge, to hate, and to treat each other like family. So if you are judging me as a homosexual and telling me I’m sinning, you are just as much a sinner as I am because you are judging. A sin is a sin no matter what the subject, so now you’re no better than I am if homosexuality is a sin at all. In many arguments, especially at Liberty University, The world’s largest Christian University, I would always be told that being homosexual is a “choice”. That one is “not born that way, they chose to live that lifestyle.” I disagree with this statement. When did heterosexuals “chose to be straight”? They didn’t, they were born that way; it is the same with homosexuals. If homosexuality is a choice, why are there so many stories of homosexual teen’s that commit suicide because they do not like the lifestyle they are living, and do not want to be gay? If this was a choice, then most humans in their right state of mind would chose life over death, and “choose” to be straight. My theory was even stated by Dr. Condit on the NewsBank (Condit, 2012). Many religious groups, such as the Christians at Liberty University have told me that being gay is not heredity. I find this interesting as I also took a class on genetics and genealogy. Some of the things that are hereditary are eye color, hair color, height, weight, body hair, voice. How is the way we act not? If there are homosexuals in the family, how can this gene not be apart of what causes a homosexual to be a homosexual? In genealogy, you can trace to find out if your ancestry has a drinking problem, tobacco use problem, abusive problem, graduated college or high school, or how successful they were. Then you’re told, well you can be a violent person, or have a heart condition or severe medical condition because of your family history, but you can’t be gay because of this? This sounds like a fallacy to me. On the Tyra Banks Show, there is an episode where homosexuals want to change, they that their lifestyle. There’s a homosexual that married his best friend, who happens to be a female. He states he is gay. The wife will tell you how unhappy he his. The homosexual will tell you that when he is having intercourse with his wife, he has to think of men. They often have a threesome with another man, just so the homosexual can get his needs met sexually. The marriage is not lasting and cannot work (Titelbaum, 2009). No matter what religion you grew up as or currently practice, and no matter what your personal feelings are towards same-sex marriage or heterosexual marriage, remember that if two people are happy, why should we deny them the rights to be happy? As you’re criticizing the homosexuals for being “sinful” remember that judging and the hatred towards homosexuals is also a sin. Now that you know different parts about the verses in the Bible about homosexuality, reasons that support same-sex marriage, and the discriminatory reasons against same-sex marriage, as well as some true facts about homosexuals, should you fell same-sex marriage should be legalized?

References
Condit, R. (2012). Homosexuals are born that way; no choice. Retrieved from http://infoweb.newsbank.com.proxy-library.ashford.edu/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_action=doc&p_topdoc=1&p_docnum=1&p_sort=YMD_date:D&p_product=AWNB&p_text_direct-0=document_id=(%20141B51EDC1F3B1E0%20)&p_docid=141B51EDC1F3B1E0&p_theme=aggdocs&p_queryname=141B51EDC1F3B1E0&f_openurl=yes&p_nbid=H42G4DDAMTM4NTk0MzE4Ni42MzQ4OTY6MToxMDpFQlNDTzE3OTcy&&p_multi=KBJB
Family Research Council. (n.d.). Ten Arguments From Social Science Against Same-Sex Marriage. Retrieved from http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=if04g01
Gentile, M. (Director). (2012, May, 18). [Seasosn 14, Episode 163]. In ABC (Producer), The View 5/18.
Hall, G. (2013, October, 7). ’Homophobia’ a Sin; Same-Sex Marriages Will Be Performed [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/penny-starr/national-cathedral-leader-homophobia-sin-same-sex-marriages-will-be
Mosser, K. (2010). Ethics and Social Responsibility. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/books/AUSOC120.10.2
Should Gay Marriage Be Legal? (n.d). Retrieved November 28, 2013, from http://gaymarriage.procon.org/#Background
Titelbaum, S. (Director). (2009, Feb. 18). I Hate Being Gay [CBS]. New York City: CBS. divulgate. (2011, Feb 3). Zach Wahls Speaks About Family [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMLZO-sObzQ mediagrrl9. (2009, April 8). Testimony of 12-Year-Old with Two Moms MOves Some Veromont Legislators to Support Gay Marriage Bill [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxnjQdMpnCM`

References: Condit, R. (2012). Homosexuals are born that way; no choice. Retrieved from http://infoweb.newsbank.com.proxy-library.ashford.edu/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_action=doc&p_topdoc=1&p_docnum=1&p_sort=YMD_date:D&p_product=AWNB&p_text_direct-0=document_id=(%20141B51EDC1F3B1E0%20)&p_docid=141B51EDC1F3B1E0&p_theme=aggdocs&p_queryname=141B51EDC1F3B1E0&f_openurl=yes&p_nbid=H42G4DDAMTM4NTk0MzE4Ni42MzQ4OTY6MToxMDpFQlNDTzE3OTcy&&p_multi=KBJB Family Research Council. (n.d.). Ten Arguments From Social Science Against Same-Sex Marriage. Retrieved from http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=if04g01 Gentile, M. (Director). (2012, May, 18). [Seasosn 14, Episode 163]. In ABC (Producer), The View 5/18. Hall, G. (2013, October, 7). ’Homophobia’ a Sin; Same-Sex Marriages Will Be Performed [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/penny-starr/national-cathedral-leader-homophobia-sin-same-sex-marriages-will-be Mosser, K. (2010). Ethics and Social Responsibility. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/books/AUSOC120.10.2 Should Gay Marriage Be Legal? (n.d). Retrieved November 28, 2013, from http://gaymarriage.procon.org/#Background Titelbaum, S. (Director). (2009, Feb. 18). I Hate Being Gay [CBS]. New York City: CBS. divulgate. (2011, Feb 3). Zach Wahls Speaks About Family [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMLZO-sObzQ mediagrrl9. (2009, April 8). Testimony of 12-Year-Old with Two Moms MOves Some Veromont Legislators to Support Gay Marriage Bill [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxnjQdMpnCM`