As granted by the United States Constitution, everyone is entitled to equal rights. The Supreme Court of the United States recently ruled that the Constitution guarantees a right to same-sex marriage. Gay rights are forgotten many times and equal rights for same-sex marriage are often ignored. For this reason, federal authorities have left policymaking regarding this topic up to individual state governments. Many people throughout the United States, and across the world, have extremely different views on the subject; some because of religious reasons, others because of family, others because of how they were raised. The policy of gay marriage and equal rights is an extremely touchy subject, and is much deeper than what it may seem.
Ohio is one of the thirty-five states that do not recognize gay marriage to be legal, therefore granting no marriage benefits to such couples (ProCon.org, 2013). “Ohio limits marriage to "one man and one woman" by statute,” (Equality Ohio, n.d.). Males must be at least 18 years of age, while females must be at least 16 years of age to each be of free from gaining consent from their legal guardians (LaWriter, 2004). The Ohio law is very specific on these guidelines of which marriages are legal and which are not.
Plenty of issues are related to the policy of gay marriage and equal rights. Benefits of marriage are but one issue regarding this. In Ohio, legal marriage guarantees benefits that regard taxes, estates, employment, medical, death, family, and many more subjects. All of these benefits consider the spouses as one. Spouses are able to collect disability or social security for each other. They may also be able to obtain insurance from their spouse's employer (Guillen, n.d.). Benefits such as the...
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Santoscoy, C. (2013, September 9). Sherrod Brown Helps Launch Ohio Gay Marriage Campaign - On Top Magazine | Gay news & entertainment. Retrieved from http://www.ontopmag.com/article.aspx?id=16357&MediaType=1&Category=26
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Wong, C. M. (2012, November 5). 'Glee,' 'Modern Family' And Other LGBT-Themed TV Shows Drive Gay Marriage Support: Poll. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/05/glee-modern-family-hollywood-reporter-gay-tv-poll_n_2077149.html#slide=1525074
The Glee has been one of the most popular sitcoms in recent years. It was identified as a gay-friendly show on the mainstream TV station. The show breaks the boundaries and stereotypes that have been set and present audience with the real world of gay and lesbian. More specifically, the unique gay/lesbian characters representation in the show not only allows heterosexual people to have their finger on the pulse of homosexual culture but also resonates the homosexual audience.
Throughout the recent history of America, gay marriage has always been an issue. With the different views and morals everyone has on the subject, it makes it hard for individual states to determine what side they should be on. In 1983 a Harvard Law School student, Evan Wolfson, wrote a thesis stating the rule of marriage equality. Justices concluded that gay couples were entitled to the legal benefits of civil marriage; and most crucially in the Supreme Judicial Court in Massachusetts, whose favorable ruling, in a suit by lawyer Mary Bonauto and the Boston-based Gay and Lesbian Advocated and Defenders, led to the nation’s first bona fide same-sex marriages…” (“Gay Marriage turns 10 and Credit Should Be Spread around- The Boston Globe). On May 17, 2004 Massachusetts became the first state to legalize gay marriages. In June of 2013, California legalized gay marriages, which helped their large LGBT (Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered) community. (“History and Timeline of the Freedom…”). When this finally happened, it was seen as a great achievement by Karmala Harris, a California Attorney. “This is a profound day in our country, and its just the right thing: ‘Justice is finally being served’” (“Court Gives OK for California Gay Marriages”).
Abstract On June 26, 2015 a divided Supreme Court ruled in the landmark case Obergefell v. Hodges that same-sex couples could now marry nationwide. At the time of the split ruling there were 9 supreme court justices, 5 of the justices were Republicans, and the remaining 4 were Democrats. In high profile cases it is except that the justices will vote along party lines. When the 5-4 ruling was reveled by the following statement. “It would misunderstand these men and women to say they disrespect the idea of marriage. Their plea is that they do respect it, respect it so deeply that they seek to find its fulfillment for themselves. Their hope is not to be condemned to live in loneliness, excluded from one of civilization’s oldest institutions. They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right (Corn,2015).” written by
“What’s ruining television today are those big productions – It’s the fairies who are going to ruin show business.” For some, this quote from The Jack Paar Show may seem unsettling. In the midst of a Supreme Court that has recently extended even more rights to a community so harshly oppressed, it is shocking to think that just fifty years ago, thoughts like this represented the majority opinion. The evolution of homosexuality in television has seen tremendous leaps and countless obstacles; yet what has emerged in the wake of it all is a form of media that has drastically impacted discourse surrounding gay men. This analysis aims to discuss the show Glee, as well as the key aspects of homosexuality that are portrayed. It will examine the characters
The U.S. has recognized marriage as a basic human right by many court cases including Loving v Virginia. Since protecting the marriage of a black-Cherokee woman and a white man, the case has also helped support the legalization of same-sex marriage in all 50 states. This is important because it creates a more united America by knocking down social constraints that disallowed the 5-10% of America identified as homosexual from being married. In the same way as blacks were not allowed to vote, gay couples were not allowed to marry. The legalization of same-sex marriage is helping bridge the split in social order of America by not outlawing same-sex couples for being “immoral” and implying the couples are less-deserving of marriage than a heterosexual relationship. The change of expanding the 14th amendment’s meaning of equal protection of rights for all citizens, in this case for marriage, is helping people treat each other as equivalent and allowing the country to take another step towards liberty and justice for
Imagine living in a world that did not cater to you. A world that did not approve of the types of relationships you had or desired; a world that only used you for the punchline of a joke or for taboo sex appeal; a world that would rather pretend that you do not exist. For members of the LGBT community, this is their reality. Television shows, movies, music, advertisements — all of these mediums are most assuredly intended for a heterosexual audience. True, there are handfuls of television shows that have queer characters, but it is very rare for these television shows to be on primetime television. Primetime television is the hotspot of all media. It is the time when all of America is watching, and the shows featured during these time-slots
Today television shows are widely praised for their portrayal of different characters sexuality. On Modern Family a same-sex couple’s life is shown through their relations with their family and raising a child. There’s also shows aimed at young adults that are receiving attention for their depiction of gay or lesbian characters such as Glee and Pretty Little Liars. Even the Disney Channel has shown a same-sex couple on the show Good Luck Charlie (with some backlash claiming that since Disney is intended for children that they should seek merely to entertain and not to push an agenda). On the contrary to this argument is the idea, that same-sex couples are becoming more and more normal thus they should make it recognizable to children.
Sixty years from now, the American people will look back on the 21st century and be appalled at how the people from today allowed their government to make it illegal for certain couples to get married, just as the people of today are disgusted with the ban on marriage between interracial couples before 1967. Being so advanced technologically, it is surprising how America is still so behind on the issue of same-sex marriage. The United States should push aside the religious argument in this debate, and truly separate its church and state as it claims to do so. From its slow beginning to the rapid increase of support in the 70’s, homosexual marriage has been a controversial debate that hopefully will end in the near future.
Wolf, Richard. “Timeline: Same-Sex marriage through the years.” USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 26 June 2015,
The 1990s saw a surge of gay characters in both television and movies. From Ellen Degeneres and her character Ellen Morgan coming out under much scrutiny on the TV show ‘Ellen,’ to Julia Roberts and Rupert Everett comedically playing off each other in the motion picture ‘My Best Friend’s Wedding.’ Sure, gays and lesbians have been around forever, especially in Hollywood. But never has there been a time to be more out. With the popularity of shows like Will and Grace, which feature leading gay characters, as well as Dawson’s Creek
Stoddard, T, Fein, B, (Jan. 1990) Gay Marriage, Personal relationships, Marriage, Legislation, Homosexuality, American Bar Association, (Pages 42, 42)
What is equality? Is it bending to the nations will or is it providing certain human rights without regard of the person or persons? The majority of Americans believe in the latter. Unfortunately, giving same-sex couples the right to marry, which is a human right, threatens certain traditions in the world of religion. However, the legalization of same-sex marriage is a necessary action to keep our nations view on equality. Although same-sex marriage is a recently approached issue, homosexual rights has been a subject in debate since its introduction to the mainstream since the 1960’s.
On June 26, 2015, the US Supreme Court ruled that the US Constitution guarantees the right for same-sex couples to marry. Should gay marriages be legal? Clearly we as a nation are undecided on this issue. Thirty-six states have passed legislation banning gay marriages, yet a few states have passed laws that allows homosexual couples the right to participate in civil unions. Several other states are also debating whether or not to allow these couples to marry. Unfortunately, the dispute has left the United States' homosexual community in an awkward position. There are some people who think that gay people have no rights and should never be allowed to marry, and others believe that gay people should enjoy the same rights and privileges as heterosexuals. I think that the United States should allow same-sex couples to marry just like heterosexual couples.
In conclusion I argue that banning same-sex marriage is discriminatory. It is discriminatory because it denies homosexuals the many benefits received by heterosexual couples. The right to marriage in the United States has little to do with the religious and spiritual meaning of marriage. It has a lot to do with social justice, extending a civil right to a minority group. This is why I argue for same-sex marriage. The freedom to marry regardless of gender preference should be allowed.
middle of paper ... ... Works Cited Adam Sharpiro, Megan Schultz, Christina Roush, Cassandra Schofar, Emily Shilling, Tawnia Simpson, Natalie Sampiller. Portrayal of Homosexuality in Media. 26 March 2014 http://www.bgsu.edu/departments/tcom103fall2004/gp16.pdf>. Huegel, Kelly.