Same Sex Marriage

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Same sex marriage has been a topic on the rise throughout the U.S. It is what some of us may consider one of the more important topics of discussion for this time period. So far 17 states out of 50 have declared same sex marriage legal (States, 2013). Same sex marriage should be legal throughout the U.S. because same sex couples have a civil right to get married, along with a right to have access to the same benefits as heterosexual couples, and to be treated as equals without fear of discrimination.
Same sex marriage is a civil right. In 1958 a couple named Richard and Mildred Loving were arrested in their home for interracial marriage in Virginia, which happened to be illegal at the time. They received a 1-year jail sentence, which was suspended under the condition that they leave the state together and not return back for 25 years (Gay Marriage Legal, n.d.). In 1967 the U.S. Supreme Court overruled interracial marriage as being illegal and declared that the freedom of marriage belonged to all Americans. They went so far as to define marriage as one of our, “vital personal rights,” which coincides with our right as a citizen to pursue happiness in this country (Gay Marriage Legal, n.d.). Even NAACP in May of 2012, named same sex marriage as the civil rights issue of our time (Gay Marriage Legal, n.d.).
On the opposite side, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 has three basic characteristics of what it includes and covers when it comes to civil rights. Those are long-term discrimination, the U.S. disadvantaged, and unchanging characteristics of someone over time (Gay Marriage Legal, n.d.). It does not however, include sexual orientation. However, that contradicts what the Supreme Court said when they defined marriage as one of our “vi...

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...nard, T., & Lieber, R. (2009, October 2). The high price of being a gay couple. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/03/your-money/03money.html?pagewanted=all
Compare translations from 1 Peter 2:18. Retrieved from http://www.biblestudytools.com/1-peter/2-18-compare.html
Finding happiness. (2014). Retrieved from http://findinghappinessmovie.com/find-happiness/happiness-quotes/
Santos, F. (2014, Feb 26). Arizona governor vetoes bill on refusal of service to gays. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/27/us/Brewer-arizona-gay-service-bill.html
Should gay marriage be legal?. Retrieved from http://gaymarriage.procon.org
States. (2013, Dec 20). Retrieved from http://www.freedomtomarry.org/states/.
Treybig, D. (1997, May). Lessons from the first marriage. Retrieved from http://www.ucg.org/sex/lessons-first-marriage/

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