Paper = done
I finished my paper :) I am proud of it and wanted to show it to my LJ buddies. Tell me what you think...pretty please. :)
It is in my firm belief that the United States was built and established on the grounds that its inhabitants would feel secure in their rights. The escape from religious persecution was the reason for uprooting their lives and moving to a foreign, new world. Just like most things, this particular transition had its risks, and it was not well accepted by a certain King. By estranging its citizens and pushing them, the King soon found himself presented with a now well-known document known at the Declaration of Independence. The Constitution soon followed in 1791 as a way to govern the newly freed country and that document is believed to have set the foundation for the United States. It is filled with guidelines and rules to help run the country smoothly. Among those guidelines, there are the Amendments, which are there to better control human activity. To this day, they often quoted to prove points and decide whether or not something is unjust. Now, we are living in the twenty-first century, and there are people and topics coming to surface that makes us question if we are really secure and safe in those rights. None of us can be too sure about our lives and about the way we are allowed to live them. Recently, it has come to light that you are trying to make a constitutional ban against same-sex marriage. In response, you will find three well-written complaints against this ban, and why I believe it should be retracted.
The First Amendment states that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or of the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” Here is the case of the separation of Church and State. In taking away the right for homosexuals to marry, there would be a ban that is primarily Christian based. Therefore it is contradicting this amendment by making a law that is respecting one establishment of religion. In fact, for those who are not Christian, it infringes on their constitutional rights to not have religion be the basis of laws and government. Looking at it in a religious point-of-view, and take the Bible literally, you must know that God does not want the people to persecute each other. He wants us to treat us all as equals. Condemning homosexuals and putting them to the side is not the way to go about this. The Bible also states that every sin is the same in His eyes. So why not make a constitutional amendment against those who don’t love thy neighbor?
The issue of protecting the sanctity of marriage is another argument used by those who support the ban. In this present day, I find it rather vague to pinpoint homosexual marriage as the reason for a possible ruin of this sanctity. It is a weak argument to use when the divorce rate of heterosexuals is at 50%, and it only seems to be decreasing from there. Also, take into consideration the fact that in January, “pop princess,” Britney Spears ran down the aisle in Las Vegas, only to have her marriage to Jason Alexander annulled 55 hours later. I can’t begin to figure out how marriages under the influence of alcohol aren’t ruining the sanctity either. Or, how about the shows that have aired on television recently such as: Joe Millionaire, For Love or Money, The Bachelor, and My Big Fat Obnoxious Fiancé? Many of these shows cheapen the idea of marriage by setting up a camera and waving money in front of these people’s faces, forcing them to ruin the value of marriage for a pretty penny. If you believe that none of this is harmful to this so-called ‘sanctity’, then why is it so wrong to allow two people who care for, and love each other to marry, despite being the same gender? If more unions were based out of concern, care, love, honesty, and respect for others, things just might improve. Also, believing that allowing same-sex couples to wed, will only lead to more completely atrocious unions such as an adult and a child, or a human and an animal is childish and even more atrocious. This assumption and accusation is ludicrous to say the least, and it shouldn’t be believed or further spread. While I don’t agree completely with the presented view of marriage, I do believe that it is something shared between two consenting adults who love each other. As long as they are both of legal age to consent to marriage and sex, I don’t see why there is such a bias against these couples, who would love nothing more that to be acknowledged and allowed to marry.
Finally, I would like to address the issue of the children. Whether they are homosexual children and teens, or children of a same-sex couple, they are all affected by the idea of banning same-sex couples to marry. Taking a look at homosexual children and teens, no one can help but wonder how they are not the ones hurt. What kind of future can they hope for if the society they live in says that can’t legally bond with the one they’ll love, and can’t have all the rights that entails? What if they grow up watching loving, married couples, which can include their parents, and know that they won’t be allowed that kind of happiness. By encouraging people to be against these couples, the stigma in this country about homosexuals will only grow. Finding someone to love and marry is the American Dream, and what if those many young homosexuals have their dream denied? Now, taking into consideration, the children being raised by same-sex couples, does everyone assume that they will become homosexual also? There is no solid proof that children raised by a homosexual parent/couple grow to be so. Just like being heterosexual parents doesn’t guarantee you a heterosexual child. It’s a shaky and weak debate, and homosexual couples are just as qualified to raise children in loving homes.
In conclusion, I hope that this can be taken and used wisely. If not that, at least take it into consideration. Ask anyone to put themselves in their shoes and picture themselves being denied the right to separate church from state, being accused of trying to ruin the sanctity of marriage, or being a child with no hope of the American Dream. Homosexuals are no different, and should be considered no different from anyone else, and yet, they don’t receive the respect they deserve. By banning homosexuals the right to marry, there is the potential to make the first amendment that has removed human rights. Equality is a right, not a privilege.
It is in my firm belief that the United States was built and established on the grounds that its inhabitants would feel secure in their rights. The escape from religious persecution was the reason for uprooting their lives and moving to a foreign, new world. Just like most things, this particular transition had its risks, and it was not well accepted by a certain King. By estranging its citizens and pushing them, the King soon found himself presented with a now well-known document known at the Declaration of Independence. The Constitution soon followed in 1791 as a way to govern the newly freed country and that document is believed to have set the foundation for the United States. It is filled with guidelines and rules to help run the country smoothly. Among those guidelines, there are the Amendments, which are there to better control human activity. To this day, they often quoted to prove points and decide whether or not something is unjust. Now, we are living in the twenty-first century, and there are people and topics coming to surface that makes us question if we are really secure and safe in those rights. None of us can be too sure about our lives and about the way we are allowed to live them. Recently, it has come to light that you are trying to make a constitutional ban against same-sex marriage. In response, you will find three well-written complaints against this ban, and why I believe it should be retracted.
The First Amendment states that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or of the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” Here is the case of the separation of Church and State. In taking away the right for homosexuals to marry, there would be a ban that is primarily Christian based. Therefore it is contradicting this amendment by making a law that is respecting one establishment of religion. In fact, for those who are not Christian, it infringes on their constitutional rights to not have religion be the basis of laws and government. Looking at it in a religious point-of-view, and take the Bible literally, you must know that God does not want the people to persecute each other. He wants us to treat us all as equals. Condemning homosexuals and putting them to the side is not the way to go about this. The Bible also states that every sin is the same in His eyes. So why not make a constitutional amendment against those who don’t love thy neighbor?
The issue of protecting the sanctity of marriage is another argument used by those who support the ban. In this present day, I find it rather vague to pinpoint homosexual marriage as the reason for a possible ruin of this sanctity. It is a weak argument to use when the divorce rate of heterosexuals is at 50%, and it only seems to be decreasing from there. Also, take into consideration the fact that in January, “pop princess,” Britney Spears ran down the aisle in Las Vegas, only to have her marriage to Jason Alexander annulled 55 hours later. I can’t begin to figure out how marriages under the influence of alcohol aren’t ruining the sanctity either. Or, how about the shows that have aired on television recently such as: Joe Millionaire, For Love or Money, The Bachelor, and My Big Fat Obnoxious Fiancé? Many of these shows cheapen the idea of marriage by setting up a camera and waving money in front of these people’s faces, forcing them to ruin the value of marriage for a pretty penny. If you believe that none of this is harmful to this so-called ‘sanctity’, then why is it so wrong to allow two people who care for, and love each other to marry, despite being the same gender? If more unions were based out of concern, care, love, honesty, and respect for others, things just might improve. Also, believing that allowing same-sex couples to wed, will only lead to more completely atrocious unions such as an adult and a child, or a human and an animal is childish and even more atrocious. This assumption and accusation is ludicrous to say the least, and it shouldn’t be believed or further spread. While I don’t agree completely with the presented view of marriage, I do believe that it is something shared between two consenting adults who love each other. As long as they are both of legal age to consent to marriage and sex, I don’t see why there is such a bias against these couples, who would love nothing more that to be acknowledged and allowed to marry.
Finally, I would like to address the issue of the children. Whether they are homosexual children and teens, or children of a same-sex couple, they are all affected by the idea of banning same-sex couples to marry. Taking a look at homosexual children and teens, no one can help but wonder how they are not the ones hurt. What kind of future can they hope for if the society they live in says that can’t legally bond with the one they’ll love, and can’t have all the rights that entails? What if they grow up watching loving, married couples, which can include their parents, and know that they won’t be allowed that kind of happiness. By encouraging people to be against these couples, the stigma in this country about homosexuals will only grow. Finding someone to love and marry is the American Dream, and what if those many young homosexuals have their dream denied? Now, taking into consideration, the children being raised by same-sex couples, does everyone assume that they will become homosexual also? There is no solid proof that children raised by a homosexual parent/couple grow to be so. Just like being heterosexual parents doesn’t guarantee you a heterosexual child. It’s a shaky and weak debate, and homosexual couples are just as qualified to raise children in loving homes.
In conclusion, I hope that this can be taken and used wisely. If not that, at least take it into consideration. Ask anyone to put themselves in their shoes and picture themselves being denied the right to separate church from state, being accused of trying to ruin the sanctity of marriage, or being a child with no hope of the American Dream. Homosexuals are no different, and should be considered no different from anyone else, and yet, they don’t receive the respect they deserve. By banning homosexuals the right to marry, there is the potential to make the first amendment that has removed human rights. Equality is a right, not a privilege.