(no subject)
"So, today I was asked to come here and say a few words. I spent so long trying to think about what words I would say, in fact, I spent longer on this speech than I did on this outfit, and my Dave will tell you, that has never happened before.
When I think about equal rights, there are always three words that stick in my mind, three words repeated ad nauseum by those who would deny us our rights, or by those who sit on the fence when discussing this topic. First of all, to the fence sitters - you really should be on our side, because we have a lot in common - we both have something up our asses on a regular basis. Those fence posts have gotta hurt, right?
Anyway, joking aside, when I was thinking about this speech and doing a little research into the arguments against equal rights, I kept coming across three words.
Seperate, but equal.
And the more I thought about those words, the more ridiculous they seemed. The statement "seperate but equal" is a complete oxymoron. If we are kept seperate, than we are not equal.
People will tell you that this is a complicated issue, a delicate subject, but that's something I have to disagree with. This is not complicated, it has never been complicated, and the only people complicating it are the very people who would deny us the right to get married, the same people who cringe when I kiss my partner in a restaurant. This issue is not complicated. We want equal rights. As human beings, we deserve them. We are being denied our rights. How is that complicated?
As passionate as I am about this subject, I feel the need to at least acknowledge the inane arguments spewed forth by those who would deny us our rights. First of all, they will claim that the way we live our life goes against God, that we are evil because a book over 2,000 years old claims it. But that book that they put so much value on? It also states the adultery is a sin - how many Christians have cheated on their partners? But it also says that men who need glasses shouldn't be priests! If you believe that the words of Leviticus are enough to deny gay men and women equal rights, then you also believe that those with glasses can't be a priest. My message to those who would hide their homophobia behind their Bible - don't you dare use one law to persecute me, when your religion pays no mind to the other laws laid down in the very same book!
Then there are those that will say that marriage is reserved for a man and a woman, and it's always been that way. Those people need a history lesson. In the early days of the Roman empire, same sex marriage was commonplace, and the ceremony contained the same rituals performed at a heterosexual ceremony. How can it be that thousands of years ago, a civilisation was more evolved than we are now?
There are more arguments against us. Some argue that legalization of same-sex marriages will open the door for the legalization of polygamy. How that link was made is beyond me. I've only ever loved one man, and I've been with him for more than half my life. I will never love anyone the way I love my Dave, I will never have another relationship as long as I live. He's it for me, he always has been. I want to marry him, not everyone that catches my eye! Then there are those that claim that recognition of same-sex marriages would erode religious freedoms. Two words, ladies and gentlemen, refute that argument: Adam Eden. The only peole eroding his religious freedom are those who supposedly share his faith! He's been turned out of churches, he's been denied access to the Vatican City, he's been told that he is not a Catholic and is going to Hell - so who is truly eroding religious freedom here? He's not free to walk into a most churches and pray, so to those who claim that equal rights for us will somehow impact their religion - look at yourselves and your treatment of Adam Eden before you make some outrageous comment. But the one that really gets on my nerves? Is when they say that legalising gay marriage will have a negative effect on the family, and the raising of children.
I have a son, as I'm sure most of you know. He is a wonderful little boy, he's the light of my life. I love him the way any father loves his son. Dave loves him the way any father loves their son, even though biologically, they aren't related. My son wants for nothing. He is bright, funny, kind and sweet. He goes to the best school in California, he has all the toys he wants, and he is raised by Dave and I, not by a nanny. He is loved, and he is so precious to us, and he loves us as well. I recently had the pleasure of meeting an incredible young man called Oscar Alexander-Wild, who was raised by a gay couple, and he's a remarkable person. He's a musical genuis, graduated high school at just 14, has played with some of the best orchestras in the world. He's articulate, passionate and dedicated and he was raised by two gay rights activists. If my son grows up to be anything like Oscar, I'll be so, so proud of him. There is no proof that gay people make bad parents, just like there's no proof that every heterosexual couple will make good parents. My abilities as a father have nothing to do with my sexuality, and my son is an absolute treasure. I challenge anyone to spend five minutes with him and honestly say he's not a well adjusted, awesome kid.
So what argument is left? Gay marriage does not have a negative effect on the instituition of marriage itself, look at the Netherlands! When they legalised gay marriage, they found that both divorce and suicide rates dropped. And let's face it, with fifty or so percent of heterosexual marriages ending in divorce, it's not as if there's much more damage that we can do, is it?
There you have it - there is no logical reason to deny us equal rights, there just isn't. But I understand that a lot of these people, these hate filled and scared people, won't think about this matter logically. Denying us our equal rights, our HUMAN rights, is due to homophobia, hatred and misconceptions. This is supposed to be the land of the free for Christ's sake! How can we be free if we are persecuted, put down, and told we are less than? For that statement to be right, it should say: "Land of the free - unless you're different than the foolish notion of what's right".
I'd like to end this speech with a quote from a gay rights activist called Jason Yanowitz. He said: "if somebody doesn't have equal rights, then none of us are free".
So if you're straight...if you have any sort of compassion, or heart, if you think you have morals and ethics, I want you to think about the fact that when you go to sleep tonight, there are people out there who do not have equal rights, who fight every single day just to live their lives the way they want to. Think about gay kids who lie awake wondering if there's something wrong with them. Think about the gay men and women who watch their partners sleep and worry about what will happen to them if something horrible should happen to us. Think about the man lying in a hospital bed, with his partner forced to wait outside because their ten year relationship isn't legally valid. Think about your kids, your grandkids, who are going to look back on all this and wonder why something so foolish was ever an issue in the first place.
Think about the rights you have, and imagine a life without them. Imagine not being able to tell the world you're married. Imagine not being able to make decisions about the welfare of your partner if they end up in hospital, while the parents who abandoned him can. Imagine knowing that at this moment in time, you can't have a happy ending because a bunch of strangers think some deity doesn't want you to have it. Imagine what it would be like to not have your basic human rights - that's our reality. We live with it every single second of every single day. You have the power to change that. It only takes a split second to put a cross in the right box. Don't do it because you pity us, do it because you know in your heart that it's right, because you believe in equality for all. Do it because you believe in this great nation.
Do it because you know if you were in this situation, you would want the same compassion.
So when the time comes - and it will come soon - make the right choice. Vote for equality - because it is the right choice. Thank you."
- Fay Adams.
When I think about equal rights, there are always three words that stick in my mind, three words repeated ad nauseum by those who would deny us our rights, or by those who sit on the fence when discussing this topic. First of all, to the fence sitters - you really should be on our side, because we have a lot in common - we both have something up our asses on a regular basis. Those fence posts have gotta hurt, right?
Anyway, joking aside, when I was thinking about this speech and doing a little research into the arguments against equal rights, I kept coming across three words.
Seperate, but equal.
And the more I thought about those words, the more ridiculous they seemed. The statement "seperate but equal" is a complete oxymoron. If we are kept seperate, than we are not equal.
People will tell you that this is a complicated issue, a delicate subject, but that's something I have to disagree with. This is not complicated, it has never been complicated, and the only people complicating it are the very people who would deny us the right to get married, the same people who cringe when I kiss my partner in a restaurant. This issue is not complicated. We want equal rights. As human beings, we deserve them. We are being denied our rights. How is that complicated?
As passionate as I am about this subject, I feel the need to at least acknowledge the inane arguments spewed forth by those who would deny us our rights. First of all, they will claim that the way we live our life goes against God, that we are evil because a book over 2,000 years old claims it. But that book that they put so much value on? It also states the adultery is a sin - how many Christians have cheated on their partners? But it also says that men who need glasses shouldn't be priests! If you believe that the words of Leviticus are enough to deny gay men and women equal rights, then you also believe that those with glasses can't be a priest. My message to those who would hide their homophobia behind their Bible - don't you dare use one law to persecute me, when your religion pays no mind to the other laws laid down in the very same book!
Then there are those that will say that marriage is reserved for a man and a woman, and it's always been that way. Those people need a history lesson. In the early days of the Roman empire, same sex marriage was commonplace, and the ceremony contained the same rituals performed at a heterosexual ceremony. How can it be that thousands of years ago, a civilisation was more evolved than we are now?
There are more arguments against us. Some argue that legalization of same-sex marriages will open the door for the legalization of polygamy. How that link was made is beyond me. I've only ever loved one man, and I've been with him for more than half my life. I will never love anyone the way I love my Dave, I will never have another relationship as long as I live. He's it for me, he always has been. I want to marry him, not everyone that catches my eye! Then there are those that claim that recognition of same-sex marriages would erode religious freedoms. Two words, ladies and gentlemen, refute that argument: Adam Eden. The only peole eroding his religious freedom are those who supposedly share his faith! He's been turned out of churches, he's been denied access to the Vatican City, he's been told that he is not a Catholic and is going to Hell - so who is truly eroding religious freedom here? He's not free to walk into a most churches and pray, so to those who claim that equal rights for us will somehow impact their religion - look at yourselves and your treatment of Adam Eden before you make some outrageous comment. But the one that really gets on my nerves? Is when they say that legalising gay marriage will have a negative effect on the family, and the raising of children.
I have a son, as I'm sure most of you know. He is a wonderful little boy, he's the light of my life. I love him the way any father loves his son. Dave loves him the way any father loves their son, even though biologically, they aren't related. My son wants for nothing. He is bright, funny, kind and sweet. He goes to the best school in California, he has all the toys he wants, and he is raised by Dave and I, not by a nanny. He is loved, and he is so precious to us, and he loves us as well. I recently had the pleasure of meeting an incredible young man called Oscar Alexander-Wild, who was raised by a gay couple, and he's a remarkable person. He's a musical genuis, graduated high school at just 14, has played with some of the best orchestras in the world. He's articulate, passionate and dedicated and he was raised by two gay rights activists. If my son grows up to be anything like Oscar, I'll be so, so proud of him. There is no proof that gay people make bad parents, just like there's no proof that every heterosexual couple will make good parents. My abilities as a father have nothing to do with my sexuality, and my son is an absolute treasure. I challenge anyone to spend five minutes with him and honestly say he's not a well adjusted, awesome kid.
So what argument is left? Gay marriage does not have a negative effect on the instituition of marriage itself, look at the Netherlands! When they legalised gay marriage, they found that both divorce and suicide rates dropped. And let's face it, with fifty or so percent of heterosexual marriages ending in divorce, it's not as if there's much more damage that we can do, is it?
There you have it - there is no logical reason to deny us equal rights, there just isn't. But I understand that a lot of these people, these hate filled and scared people, won't think about this matter logically. Denying us our equal rights, our HUMAN rights, is due to homophobia, hatred and misconceptions. This is supposed to be the land of the free for Christ's sake! How can we be free if we are persecuted, put down, and told we are less than? For that statement to be right, it should say: "Land of the free - unless you're different than the foolish notion of what's right".
I'd like to end this speech with a quote from a gay rights activist called Jason Yanowitz. He said: "if somebody doesn't have equal rights, then none of us are free".
So if you're straight...if you have any sort of compassion, or heart, if you think you have morals and ethics, I want you to think about the fact that when you go to sleep tonight, there are people out there who do not have equal rights, who fight every single day just to live their lives the way they want to. Think about gay kids who lie awake wondering if there's something wrong with them. Think about the gay men and women who watch their partners sleep and worry about what will happen to them if something horrible should happen to us. Think about the man lying in a hospital bed, with his partner forced to wait outside because their ten year relationship isn't legally valid. Think about your kids, your grandkids, who are going to look back on all this and wonder why something so foolish was ever an issue in the first place.
Think about the rights you have, and imagine a life without them. Imagine not being able to tell the world you're married. Imagine not being able to make decisions about the welfare of your partner if they end up in hospital, while the parents who abandoned him can. Imagine knowing that at this moment in time, you can't have a happy ending because a bunch of strangers think some deity doesn't want you to have it. Imagine what it would be like to not have your basic human rights - that's our reality. We live with it every single second of every single day. You have the power to change that. It only takes a split second to put a cross in the right box. Don't do it because you pity us, do it because you know in your heart that it's right, because you believe in equality for all. Do it because you believe in this great nation.
Do it because you know if you were in this situation, you would want the same compassion.
So when the time comes - and it will come soon - make the right choice. Vote for equality - because it is the right choice. Thank you."
- Fay Adams.