The state of the nation in regard to gay marriage is changing at an increasingly fast rate. This week, the Associated Press reported that a record number of members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered communities are running for office. This comes after a long and ongoing battle for LGBT community.
In 1973, The American Psychiatric Association no longer classified homosexuality as a mental illness, according to the UC Davis psychology web page. From there, homosexuality continued to come out of the closet with pride parades and second parent adoptions, which gradually transitioned into civil unions. Civil unions quickly pointed out the need for same sex marriage.
As of right now, nine states allow gay marriage, but many more, including Wyoming, state that marriage is limited to a man and a woman. Some states, such as South Carolina, go a step further than simply not allowing gay marriage by refusing to recognize same sex marriages performed in other states.
This election season, gay marriage will be a hot button issue. In Washington state, voters will decide if they will allow the same sex marriage law that was passed in February. Washington could be the first state to vote to uphold a same sex marriage law, according to gaymarriage.com.
Same sex marriage is an issue that crosses party lines. President Obama is running for re-election on a pro-marriage equality platform, but gay marriage is not simply an issue supported by the Democrats. There is a growing number of Republicans who are in favor of marriage equality and their votes have been vital to many states’ marriage laws.
Gay marriage at first glance may appear to be a liberal idea, but upon further inspection it is an old-fashioned conservative idea. The GOP was formed by politicians opposing slavery, and later the GOP supported women’s suffrage, according to gop.com. Gay marriage is the next step in social reform.
One of the corner stones of the Republican Party is less government in the lives of the American people. The Republicans have been supporters of states individual rights and fewer government regulations since the early days of the party, according to gop.com. In a nut-shell the Republican Party believes the government should not tell people what they can and cannot do. By allowing gay marriage, members of the LGBT community are allowed to choose if they want to get married or not, the same right as heterosexual couples.
This November, gay marriage will come under fire. As a nation we have the potential to choose to put personal unease aside and uphold marriage equality. Do not let political party affiliation prevent you from voting to uphold personal freedoms.
