What happened to human kindness?
I posted about this on FB, but feel the need to rant a little at length, and really what better place is there for that than LJ?
I've heard a bit of noise in moderate circles, that gays shouldn't be going for "marriage" they should be going for "partner benefits." Aside from the fact that a lot of benefits are deeply tied to marriage and it will be a pain to sort them all out, the recent travesty in Rhode Island shows that bigots are just as happy to deny gays rights when they are presented as nothing more than partner benefits. And for something as basic as funeral rights! I was just talking about life insurance and wills at dinner tonight with some friends, and we all agreed that even thinking about our partners' deaths beyond "it would utterly suck" was pretty difficult. I cannot even imagine the strain and heartbreak of not being able to claim the body. I mean really, if there is ever a time when a person needs a little compassion, a little dignity, or just a fricking break from hate, it when they've just lost a life partner.
I feel like I should be outraged, and in a way I am, but I really feel a little closer to despair. It is just so incredibly sad that people can't seem to be able to see past their own agendas or judgments, to the real human suffering underneath. I just don't understand how anyone can deny someone funeral rights. Is compassion during a time of grief really too much to ask?
I've heard a bit of noise in moderate circles, that gays shouldn't be going for "marriage" they should be going for "partner benefits." Aside from the fact that a lot of benefits are deeply tied to marriage and it will be a pain to sort them all out, the recent travesty in Rhode Island shows that bigots are just as happy to deny gays rights when they are presented as nothing more than partner benefits. And for something as basic as funeral rights! I was just talking about life insurance and wills at dinner tonight with some friends, and we all agreed that even thinking about our partners' deaths beyond "it would utterly suck" was pretty difficult. I cannot even imagine the strain and heartbreak of not being able to claim the body. I mean really, if there is ever a time when a person needs a little compassion, a little dignity, or just a fricking break from hate, it when they've just lost a life partner.
I feel like I should be outraged, and in a way I am, but I really feel a little closer to despair. It is just so incredibly sad that people can't seem to be able to see past their own agendas or judgments, to the real human suffering underneath. I just don't understand how anyone can deny someone funeral rights. Is compassion during a time of grief really too much to ask?