Free Custom «Same-Sex Marriage. Social Issue» Essay Paper

Same-sex marriages have shaken the world recently. Many homosexuals from the countries where these marriages are approved can finally feel happy that the equality has won again and their rights are defended. Only since 2001, eleven countries (Canada, Denmark, Netherlands, Iceland, Argentina, South Africa, Spain, Norway, Portugal, Belgium, Sweden, including some parts of the United States, and Mexico City) have started to allow same-sex marriages. In Israel, Curacao, Aruba, Sint Maarten, and Uruguay the jurisdiction does not perform homosexual marriages but recognizes its performance elsewhere (The Millennial Generation and the Future of Gay and Lesbian Rights, 2011). Debates are continuing everywhere in the whole world showing two completely opposite points of view. Therefore, the aim of this research is to argue about the importance of recognition of homosexual marriages.

The performance of such kind of marriages is either in a religious way (as many religious groups across the whole world already do: Liberal Jews, Unitarian Universalists, Episcopalians, and the Quakers) or a secular civil ceremony.

 

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Those people who have better education are more prone to recognize the legalization of same-sex marriages, according to the survey conducted in many countries. The same survey shows that younger generations are also more likely to accept it than the older. Moreover, people who happen to have homosexual friends or at least know such people, they usually support the marriage between the same sexes (Ergun, 2012).

Court documents filed by the American scientists aver that forbidding gay men and women to enter the marriage union greatly discriminates against them in public.

Some associations describe homosexual marriages as an issue of universal human rights, equality of all humans to do what they are naturally inclined to do if this does not cause harm to anyone. Writers who are ‘pro’ gay marriages call opposition ‘homophobia’ or ‘heterosexism’ and even correlate such marriage prohibitions to interracial marriage between whites and blacks.

Digging deeper into the problem, in many countries marriage is defined as a legal and religious commitment between a woman and a man and the strong expression of their love. In our country homosexual relationships are gradually gaining more and more recognition; however, in most states it is still forbidden for one-sex couples to marry each other. Some states even call such bonds ‘civil unions’ in order not to say ‘marriage’.

Most religions make the first against-point which regard homosexuality as a terrible sin. In fact, practically each religion in the whole world, including the main ones in the United States, finds homosexuality highly unacceptable. Religious people consider it to be very offensive as it destroys the freedom of practicing religion conducting what is sinful. The U.S. legal system has evolved from the Bible laws, that is why we should not break those laws in any way possible.

The next against-point states that the very definition of the institution of marriage is weakened. 50 % divorce rate has already changed the meaning of marriage for many people (Ergun, 2012). Due to this, we should not take any more steps towards destroying this union. Heterosexual marriages make biological sense as only a woman and a man are able to procreate.

I would offer you to do the following little experiment which I have done myself to find out how do people really react to the homosexual marriages. Ask any person what they think about homosexual relationship. I give 95 % or even more that you will hear positive replies for the two people who have slightly different attraction than the majority of us does. Then you ask directly about the gay marriage. And here comes silence. Homosexuals must have the same equal rights but marriage? Very few people would support such: Many stereotypes, misunderstandings, and erroneous assumptions have been built around gay marriages and even traditional ones.

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The first ‘pro’ is that marriage benefits (property joint ownership, tax filing status, insurance benefits, etc.) have to be available for everyone (The Millennial Generation and the Future of Gay and Lesbian Rights, 2011).

Homosexuality has always existed and will exist as this is the nature of some people’s psychology. They cannot change their way of thinking and desires without harming themselves psychologically and even physically. And why should they? No discrimination should exist in democratic world where equality reins.

The next ‘pro’ is that same-sex marriages do not harm the society or anyone in it. This is just another form of relationship between two people – personal commitment which is ‘no one else’ business. If the church disapproves, it is its right; but they do not have a right to forbid it. The only thing which matters when we talk about marriage is love. No need to comment on it.

I can without a slight doubt state that we should learn to accept other people the way they are. If someone differs from us in their perception of the world, does it mean that we should point out our finger at them or go to the streets to shout our protests? I think, no. We must learn to be wiser and more tolerant and do not judge (actually, we must not judge other people at all) what we are ignorant about and what is based on false assumptions. Let us admit that the only thing which really bothers us is that we are simply not comfortable with the thought of such marriages. Many years our society promoted homosexual unions to be ridiculous but the government recognized their mistakes long ago as well as concerning other serious cases, too, especially discrimination against Afro-Americans for so many years. So why should we continue to stick to these erroneous beliefs? Cannot we finally get wiser and accept others the way we accept ourselves? If we want something, we can do anything – it is always up to us to choose whether to be biased or open and understanding.