Interviews

I am going to interview Jeff Badillo (my religion teacher) on Sunday.
Email: Jeffrey.Badillo@gmail.com

Court Cases

Goodridge vs. Department of Public Health
      Initially, 14 plaintiffs in the state of Massachusetts went to go get their marriage license but were denied their right to marry because they are same sex couple (Massachusetts does NOT recognize same sex marriages). The couples then filed a law suit complaining the state of Massachusetts are violating their rights under the US constitution by denying their request to become married. The case then went to the Massachusetts Supreme Court and there was a 4-3 ruling stating that "since marriage brings with it certain material advantages, citizens denied the right to choose to marry are excluded form the full range of human experience and denied full protection of the laws for ones vowed commitment towards an intimate and lasting relationship." The effects to this ruling can provide a positive and negative outcome. Gays are happy because they now get the same rights as heterosexual couples, however, the anti-gay marriage group of people can become upset because the ruling does not abide by what they morally believe in.

Proposition 8
     There are two sides for every case.

    "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in the state of California." Initially, California was an "Anti Gay Marriage" state but then because a "Pro Gay Marriage," and now is looking to go back to an "Anti Gay Marriage state; Proposition 8 is making this happen. The California Supreme Court voted with a 6:1 ratio to advocate Proposition 8 in the State of California. The impact on society could result in gay couples filing law suits because they would call it discrimination to deny the same rights to homosexual couples as they would to heterosexual couples. However, other people may have a different outlook on the situation because the ruling follows their morals &/ religious beliefs.

Constitutional Connection

     Under section 1 of the 14th Amendment from the US Constitution, it states that "No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United states; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law, nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." This means that equal rights are distributed throughout every one being of the United States. However, many states do not allow same-sex marriages which is discrimination amongst homosexuals, therefore meaning that they do not abide by the Constitution. Per contra, each state with laws &/ amendments prohibiting gay marriage should ethically be taken away, but it's not that easy. There are many controversial issues, for example: religion and morals, that influence the issue negatively by providing a disapproving opinion. Under the Defense of Marriage Act, marriage is defined as " a legal union between one man and one woman for purposes of all federal laws, and provides that states need not recognize a marriage from another state if it is between persons of the same sex" (DOMA). This was initially an act under the Federal Constitution meaning that every state abides by this ruling. President Barack Obama realized that this act is unconstitutional, but he can't do anything about it because in order for this case to get passed, the issue has to go through the Supreme Court. This is where section 1 in the 14th Amendment becomes crucial because people who are pro gay marriage want to persuade the Supreme Court to give homosexuals the same rights as heterosexuals. They bring up that it is discrimination to not allow the same rights and therefore goes against the constitution; therefore states that saying "no to gay marriage" should be listed as unconstitutional.

Current Interpretation

     For the same issue, there are many outlooks. Throughout the United States, there are six states allowing same sex marriages, two allowing a civil union (meaning homosexuals and heterosexuals are "separate but equal," giving same sex couples most of the same rights as married heterosexual couples except for marriage), six states abide by domestic partnerships (people withheld in a relationship are given the same domestic rights, but are not held together through a civil union or marriage), thirty-six states have a law that prohibit same sex marriages (regulations within states not allowing same sex marriages), and there are thirty states with an amendment prohibiting same sex marriages (amendment that adds on to the federal constitution). Although most states discriminate amongst same sex marriages, a few states, such as California, Nevada, Oregon and Washington, allow same sex couples the rights for a domestic partnership or a civil union, they just don't allow the couples to join hands in marriage.

To view the chart of this map, click on the highlighted paragraph to follow the link, then click "chart" above the map.

Issue Explanation

     Marriage is a way of living. It is a way for people to display their affection for the person they love and to live the rest of their lives in a blissful manner. According to the Democratic Ideals, everyone has the right to pursue happiness in their own way; however, just like in every proposal there are conflicts, and gay marriage happens to be the one getting "this short end of the stick". Every person has a right to their liberty and justice meaning they have the right to privacy in which they are free to act, think to believe, and be treated fairly; the government is NOT supposed to be able to control any one persons human rights. Be that as it is, not everything said is done. States throughout the US is having controversial issues about whether or not gay marriage should be listed as constitutional or unconstitutional. Per contra, there are two sides to this issue. There is the issue of religion which interferes with the perception of gay marriage, giving it a negative outlook and disapproving same sex couples. Along with this, there is always the issue of self interest where people abide by their own morals; thinking that if gay marriage is listed as constitutional, it will affect future generations. On the contrary, objections occur towards the disapproving people by stating that gays are citizens of the United States therefore they should abide by the same principles of the Constitution. Although there are the Democratic Ideals protecting ones rights to a happy, justified life, there are different perspectives viewed by DIFFERENT people, which is why this is such a controversial issue.

Information from: the Democratic Ideals page

Current understandings and further questions 3/21

     My current understandings of the issue of Gay Marriage is that it is illegal in most states of the US. It's illegal basically because people did not want to change the definition of marriage "the marrying of a MAN and a WOMAN," in the constitution. However, it is to my knowledge that President Obama is now for gay marriage and he said that the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is unconstitutional and because of this, there will be law suits where DOMA was initially enacted and then eventually, same sex marriages could be legalized within those states.
     Some further questions that I have regarding same sex marriages is why is it such a big issue? A reason that I keep hearing about relating to why it is an issue is because families don't want their children going to school being taught that gay marriage is the "natural" way of living, but is there really such thing as a natural way to live? Marriage should be between two people who love each other and who are willing to live the rest of their lives with one another. And another thing, abiding by the issue of people don't want their kids learning about it in school, is that I don't recall ever really getting taught about marriage in school. Meaning we all go through health class, but we don't get taught about marriage. I'm just confused as to why people have a problem with gay marriage.