Saturday, January 22, 2011

Gay marriage resonates with history

http://www.dixiesunlink.com/

With all the contention that has happened in the state of California regarding the marriage of same sex couples, I couldn't help but wonder why this group of people were  being singled out and told they could not marry while the rest of the country could marry whomever they wanted.  I was reminded of  Loving v. Virginia in 1967.

Mildred Loving, a woman of African and Native American descent and Richard Perry Loving, a white man, were residents of Virginia who had been married in June of 1958. They left Virginia to escape the Racial Integrity Act, a state law banning marriages between any white person and any non-white person.

They were caught sleeping in their bed by a group of police officers who invaded their home in the hopes of finding them having sex. The Lovings' pleaded guilty and were sentenced to one year in prison.

The trial judge, Leon M. Bazile, voiced the opinion of Johann Friedrich Blumenbach and said: "Almighty God created the races white, black, yellow, malay and red, and he placed them on separate continents. And but for the interference with his arrangement there would be no cause for such marriages. The fact that he separated the races shows that he did not intend for the races to mix."

The Presbyterian Church took a stand in 1966 stating they did not condemn or prohibit interracial marriages. The church found "no theological grounds for condemning or prohibiting marriage between consenting adults merely because of racial origin".

This couple wasn't ashamed of their love.  They exchanged vows even though they knew society didn't approve and that horrible things could happen to them. So did the couple in my next example.  They knew their marriage would be looked down upon, yet their relationship stays strong.

Genesio Oliveira and Tim Coco were married in 2005, and after being together for only a few months Oliveira was sent back to Brazil and was not allowed citizenship. Attorney General Eric Holder declined Oliveira immigration rights three years later, which has separated him from his husband, according to "Gay Brazilian Married to Massachusetts Man, May Be Deported in Six Months" by Vicki Gass published on huffingtonpost.com on Nov. 8, 2010

Because the Defense of Marriage Act doesn't recognize gay marriages, Oliveira's request to remain in the United States based solely on his relationship with Coco was denied. The fact is that if this was a heterosexual married couple they would never have suffered through more than two years of separation. If there was not any love between these two men they would not stay married, even though they are separated by a large body of water and several countries.

In the 1950s interracial relations were something society looked down upon and disapproved of.  Now men and women of any race can legally marry.  The government would not deny a person of another ethnicity the right to marry or America would be accused of racism.

Many people in our society look down on same sex marriages. Yet 42 percent of Americans now say same sex couples should be allowed to legally marry, according to a poll in "Support for Same Sex Marriage Grows" by Brian Montopoli published on cbsnews.com in April 2009. In the next few years it will be legalized and society will come to accept it, just as we have become accustomed to mixed race couples in this free country where citizens can make their own choices within reason.

We are our own country and are proud of our freedom. We are not like the Middle Eastern countries who have arranged marriages. Those kind of relationships lack the lust and desire we've cultivated in our North American society. Although, it would be a safe alternative that ensures a family's approval giving the bride or groom no element of danger, or the forbidden, or a choice of who they want to spend the rest of their life with.

Or we can simply accept that everyone is entitled to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Whether their happiness comes from being in love with someone black or white, male or female, their love is real. Who are we to tell someone they cannot have that happiness?

America has made a lot of huge decisions concerning the citizen's freedom. The sooner same sex marriage is allowed, the more time we have to become accustomed to it.  I believe every person has the right to be happy. I know the things that make me happy are going to be different from anyone else I will ever meet. But that is the beauty of living in this fine country. The varieties of people who make up our society make our culture so unique. Judging the people who live here because they are different is hypocritical.

If a black lady could marry a white man in a time where African Americans were segregated, then the people of the United States should let a man marry another man without persecuting them. If we can't do that, we are no better than our ancestors who spit on blacks because they were different.

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