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Arguments for gay marriage essay
Arguments for gay marriage essay
Controversies over same-sex marriage
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There are currently 16 states, including Washington D.C., which allow same-sex marriage. The very first being Massachusetts in 2003, but the initial concept of marriage was solely intended for opposite-sex marriage dating back nearly 60 years ago. When discussing the controversial topic of gay marriage, one should consider that if there is truly equality in the U.S. then gays should be treated in the same manner as those who are considered straight.
There are many benefits allowed to those in a marriage, whether it deals with inheritance, or tax breaks. Legally after a spouse dies, any assets such as property, money, vehicles are given to the surviving spouse provided the deceased hasn’t written otherwise in their will. While for those who aren’t allowed to be married, can’t legally inherit any of their partners assets without a written will saying so (Inheritance Law). Furthermore, the standard deduction per person was $5,950, regardless of one’s relationship status; married couples are often given personal and dependent exemptions. These exemptions can be approximately $4,000 per person. For couples earning less than $110,000 a year, every person in a household is given a free $3,800 tax exemption along with $1,000 per child. In other words, children are very beneficial when it comes to tax breaks. Why should people of the same sex, who wish to celebrate their love for one another through marriage, be excluded from such benefits? If the United States truly wishes to have equality, gay marriage should be allowed throughout the entire country (Tax Benefits).
The marital bond between two people shouldn’t be solely allowed to those of the opposite sex. Tradition says marriage is meant to unite couples, while procreating in the proce...
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...s a belief and will certainly have its critics. The only thing we can do is to look at what personally means most. Is it the equality between sexual orientation rights throughout the US? Or is it for petty reasons like it’s unnatural and “creeps me out?” These arguments are unintelligent and shouldn’t even be considered as a premise of the opposition.
Works Cited
"Inheritance Law and Your Rights." Findlaw. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Dec. 2013.
Kennedy, Dorothy M., and Jane E. Aaron. "Gay “Marriage”: Societal Suicide." The Bedford Reader. By X. J. Kennedy. 11th ed. Boston: St. Martin’s, 2012. 576-578. Print.
Kennedy, Dorothy M., and Jane E. Aaron. " What's Wrong with Gay Marriage?." The Bedford Reader. By X. J. Kennedy. 11th ed. Boston: St. Martin’s, 2012. 570-572. Print.
"Many Tax Benefits Increase Due to Inflation Adjustments." IRS. N.p., 4 Aug. 2012. Web. 10 Dec. 2013.
Wolf, Richard. “Timeline: Same-Sex marriage through the years.” USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 26 June 2015,
The constitutional right of gay marriage is a hot topic for debate in the United States. Currently, 37 states have legal gay marriage, while 13 states have banned gay marriage. The two essays, "What’s Wrong with Gay Marriage?" by Katha Pollitt and "Gay "Marriage": Societal Suicide" by Charles Colson provide a compare and contrast view of why gay marriage should be legal or not. Pollitt argues that gay marriage is a constitutional human right and that it should be legal, while Colson believes that gay marriage is sacrilegious act that should not be legal in the United States and that “it provides a backdrop for broken families and increases crime rates” (Colson, pg535). Both authors provide examples to support their thesis. Katha Pollitt provides more relevant data to support that gay marriage is a constitutional right and should be enacted as law in our entire country, she has a true libertarian mindset.
The two texts examined within, present the opposing extremes of views regarding gay and lesbian marriage. The first text entitled Let Gays Marry by Andrew Sullivan examines the intricacies of same sex relationships and why homosexual couples should be allowed to publicly show affection for one another. The second text that will be examined is titled Leave Marriage Alone written by William Bennett. Bennett gives his views on why couples of same sex nature should not be allowed to engage in marital relations. These two authors, although very different, each has a view of the ideals of marriage, and how it should be presented to the public.
When heterosexual couples get married they get certain benefits such as employee, medical, and estate. Meaning they can leave work in case of an emergency with their spouse and also get insurance for themselves and their spouse. Married couples also get the benefit of bigger tax returns and also money transferred to their account if their spouse dies. Homosexual couples do not get the privilege of being married therefore they do not get the benefits that come along with marriage.
Gay marriage is a hotly debated issue in today's society. Andrew Sullivan and William Bennett offer opposing views in the June 3, 1996 edition of Newsweek. Sullivan's article, “Let Gays Marry,” offers several arguments supporting the issues of same sex marriage. Bennett counters in his article, “Leave Marriage Alone,” that same sex marriages would be damaging to the sanctity of marriage. Each author presents several reasons for the positions they defend and bring up valid points to defend their opinions. William Bennett and Andrew Sullivan share a mutual respect for the values and sacredness of the bond of marriage. Their disagreements stem from who they believe should be allowed to marry.
AFTER GAY MARRIAGE, what will become of marriage itself? Will same-sex matrimony extend marriage's stabilizing effects to homosexuals? Will gay marriage undermine family life? A lot is riding on the answers to these questions. But the media's reflexive labeling of doubts about gay marriage as homophobia has made it almost impossible to debate the social effects of this reform. Now with the Supreme Court's ringing affirmation of sexual liberty in Lawrence v. Texas, that debate is unavoidable.
Gay marriage should be legal in all 50 states, because the idea behind America is to guarantee each individual’s freedom of choice and opinion, and expression thereof. Not only is it in many ways vaguely guaranteed in the US constitution, but laws against it also violate people's personal rights to religious freedom. The idea behind the establishment of this nation is equality for all and the protection of rights to individual beliefs. US laws are supposed to protect the rights of everybody as a whole, so that everyone has freedom to their own expression, whatever that may be.
Marriage is defined as “(1) the state of being united to a person of the opposite sex as husband or wife in a consensual and contractual relationship recognized by law (2): the state of being united to a person of the same sex in a relationship like that of a traditional marriage ("Marriage," 2003, p. 659). Despite the latter definition’s addition to dictionaries in the past decade, this definition of marriage is still debated. Being a touchy subject in both politics and religion today, it’s been very hard to come to an agreement. There are two main sides to this argument regarding the nature of marriage. Some stick to their conservative and/or religious beliefs, while others state that marriage is a civil right (Kim, 2011, p. [Page 38]). However, same-sex marriage is not legally recognized in North Carolina and thirty-two other states at this time ("Defining Marriage: State Defense," 2014). Homosexuals have been denied many of the rights given to those that are heterosexual. Same-sex couples are not able to receive other benefits as a heterosexual couple would. The lack of benefits is extremely unequal and unfair. This unacceptable treatment is unconstitutional and should not continue.
Marriage is a sacred institution ordained by God. From a Christian perspective, marriage was created for man and woman to fulfll each other and have children. From a social perspective, it is created for intimacy which is achieved through friendship, romance and attachment. Friendship entails the need for acceptance and identification (Buss, 2005, p. 259). Romance involves the need for idealization and infatuation in relationships and attachment involves the need to form bonds in relationships (Schnarch, 2009, p. 20).
The legal relationship, which comes out from a contract by which, ‘one man and one woman’ who have the ability to enter into such a union, promised to live together, take care of each other in the relation of ‘husband and wife in law for life until the legal termination of that relationship’ is defined as marriage. Marriage also may be defined as a legal union between ‘one man and one woman’ as husband and wife entering into contract changes the status of both parties in giving new rights and obligation. Traditionally, marriage has been viewed as creation of a family and vital to protection of morals and civilization. That is, the traditional principle founded from the marriage is that, the husband has the obligation to support his wife, provide a safe house, pay the necessities such as food, clothing, and to live together with the wife. The wife’s obligation entailed maintaining a home, having sexual relations with her husband and rearing the couple’s children.
Marriage benefits like joint ownership and medical decision making capacity should be available to every couple. Marriage affects many things in society such as joint ownership of property, insurance benefits, agency law and it can affect critical medical decisions. If a member of a gay couple gets ill, the other might not even be allowed to visit them since they're not considered to be a “spouse or an immediate family member,” even though they may have been together for a long time. It's completely unfair to deny people the right to even visit their ill partner, especially if that could possibly be their last chance to see or to talk to them.
For thousands of years until today, the best way to officially be the partner of someone is through marriage. People have practiced marriage for thousands of years. Many cultures see marriage as the best method to celebrate the love of a couple until death tears them apart. “Marriage establishes and maintains family, creates and sustains the ties of kinship, and is the basis of community” (Rowe 2). Marriage is a concept bigger than ones happiness
The Western Religious leaders and moralists believe only one spouse for life is the highest form of marriage. Some of the most "primitive" peoples are strictly monogamous in their ideals, while some "highly advanced" cultures have moved away from the stri...
Marriage naturally creates families; it provides the conditions for a healthy environment that is beneficial to the upbringing of children. Opponents of same-sex marriage often ground their arguments on parental and religious concerns. Many argue that sa...
“Marriage comes with many benefits, rights, and protections in federal law alone. These benefits are only available to married couples, some of these benefits are; joint tax, access to family health coverage and others. Married couples also have access to protections if the relationship end”( ). With all these benefits that come with marriage, the gay community should be able to have the right to access these benefits like straight people