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Rocking my rainbow socks at Pride Parade in 2008
I am glad and proud that a country like Canada can celebrate the Pride Parade, celebrate equality, celebrate the love between two people of the same sex. Same-sex marriage, or gay marriage, is something that I totally support, from a straight point of view. From here to the end of this blog post, the opinions are completely formed from my own personal knowledge and from researches I have done. The opinions expressed here do not reflect the opinion of any other person. It is a very extensive and sensitive topic to talk about, so bare with me.
Same-sex marriage is legal in Argentina, Belgium, Iceland, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, and Canada, the 4th nation to legalize same-sex marriage and the first nation in America to do so. Go Canada!! Unfortunately, there are still some counties, even some states in the United States where same-sex marriage is illegal and not recognized, and even worse, in some countries like in Saudi Arabia, Iran, Mauritania and Yemen, homosexuality can lead to death penalty.
There are two kinds of people: those who are against same-sex marriage and those who support same-sex marriage. From what I know, the people who are against same-sex marriage are usually more conservative people who argue from a religious point of view. These are some of the common arguments against same-sex marriage:
1. Marriage is a sacred act performed between a man and a woman; legalizing same-sex marriage will ruin the meaning of marriage and it goes against nature (who says that marriage can't be between two men or two women? who defines marriage?)
2. Marriage is for procreation, ensuring that the population growth continues. (having more gay couples doesn't mean less procreation, plus gay people can go for adoptions and give children the home they deserve)
3. Same-sex couples don't provide the adequate environment to raise a children. (what about violent environments in heterosexual relationships? cheating? drug and alcohol abuse?)
4. Same-sex marriage will lead to polygamy, incest, marrying objects, etc. (in extreme cases)
5. Gay marriage will encourage the spread of sexual transmitted diseases like AIDS (there are monogamous gay people, and heterosexual people can spread diseases too)
But I believe that most people who believe in these arguments are close-minded people who are afraid of change in society, afraid of things that are unnatural, or are just uncomfortable with the idea about a man making love to another man, or a woman making love to another woman. But the biggest fear is that same-sex marriage goes against everything that the religion stands for.
I don't understand why would people oppose to same-sex marriage. They probably don't understand why people like me support it anyway.
In my opinion, gay people are just like any of us, common people who pay taxes like we do, eat the same way as we do, go to the same places as we do; they just happen to have a physical and emotional attraction to people of their same sex. People are people, and we all deserve the same rights. The right to fall in love, the right to be with the person we want, the right to celebrate that love. So why deny that right to gay people if we don't want them to deny us any other kind of right???
I used to know this girl. She had a relationship with this man for a few years. Then she decided to get married to him, almost forcing him into marriage, being the controlling person that she is. Although she had confessed that she no longer had feelings for this man, she is still marrying him because he has a very stable and good job that will provide her all the money she needs.
I also happen to know this man. He's very sweet and very kind. Just like most people, he looked to fall in love and marry someone. One day he met this guy and fell madly in love with him. They have been together since and they have been going out for a couple years. They have a great relationship together; always helping each other, being there for each other, and it's almost like they are meant for each other! Greatest couple ever. They want to get married some day, to celebrate this love, however, the laws of the state where they lived prohibited them to do so.
Tell me, from those two stories, who has more the right to get married?
People against gay marriage talk about how gay marriage leads to disaster, broken homes, spread of diseases and polygamy. But what about the rates of divorce, broken homes, cheating, spread of diseases in Straight relationships??
This reminds me about the time,when, somewhere, monogamous gay people were not allowed to donate blood, but polygamous straight people were allowed. How irrational is that?
On June 24th, 2011 the New York senate passed the Marriage Equality Act, legalizing same-sex marriage in one of the most popular states in the United States. Go New York! This meant a great progress for people who support it and they are one step closer to totally legalizing same-sex marriage in the country. That would be a great goal to achieve.
