Legalizing Gay Marriage

ENL 101-02
Legalization of Gay Marriage
In today’s society homosexuality is becoming more accepted. You see homosexuals coming out and feeling more comfortable in their skin and why shouldn’t they? They have no reason to hide who they are because they live in America where you have the freedom to choose. Being homosexual for most people is not a choice it comes from ones different genetic characteristics. Hollywood fully embraces homosexuality. I believe Hollywood has made an impact on most of America’s perception of homosexuality. Some people have become comfortable adopting the idea that legalizing gay marriage isn’t so bad. They also believe that it has nothing to do with how one walks, talks, or dresses but that homosexuals should be
Gay activist Jonathan Rauch has argued that marriage is good for all men, whether homosexual or heterosexual, because engaging in its social roles reduces men's aggression and promiscuity. He states, “A parent's sexual orientation is unrelated to their ability to provide a healthy and nurturing family environment; and that marriage bestows substantial psychological, social, and health benefits.” (Par 4) The data of current psychological and other social science studies on same-sex marriage in comparison to opposite-sex marriage show that same-sex and opposite-sex relationships do not differ in the psychological effects. Same-sex couples and their children are likely to benefit in numerous ways from legal recognition of their families, and providing such recognition through marriage will give greater benefit than civil unions or domestic partnerships. If same sex marriage is legalized federally it can and will help with nationwide problems such as orphans and adoption. Adoption by same sex couples is illegal in many states as it is seen the parents will raise them immorally. This could not be farther off from the truth. Gay couples are more accepting than the straight couples that vote to not allow the marriage and could actually teach them to be open to more things in life Adoption can take the form of a joint adoption by a same-sex couple or adoption by one member of a same-sex
The views by some against same-sex marriage are that there are equal rights but the people choose to have less. First, gay and lesbians already possess rights equally protected under the law. They have the exact rights that heterosexuals have today. They can marry a member of the opposite sex if they so choose. Straight men and women can't marry a member of their own sex, even if they wanted to. So, the rights are shared. Also, in some states it is illegal to participate in sodomy which is vastly practiced in the gay community so by allowing them to marry it is encouraging the ignorance of the law. Another argument shared widely is that homosexuals cannot be legally married because they cannot produce a child. If they can’t produce children then they do not contribute to the growth of the country as a whole. John Birch says, “Being brought up in a household with opposite sex parents can be seen as fundamental to a child’s growth.”(p.6) Due to the some of the research done by some psychologists such as Freud, a child not exposed to a parent figure of each sex could be influence some of the complexes they