Proposal Essay for Research Paper on Same-Sex Marriage

My impending paper, “My Stand for Marriage, Gay or Straight, why does it matter?” Will discuss why I believe same-sex marriage should be legal in the United States; a country that claims all people are created and treated equally, where all people have many rights, one of which should be the right to marry whomever they choose, and spouses, same-sex or not, deserve health benefits, death benefits, social security benefits and all of the other legal rights bestowed on every other marital union between a man and a woman.
This topic was important for me to present for several reasons, one being that I was very curious to learn more about the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) that I had been hearing about in the news in the past few months. I also had an uncle who recently passed away who was gay and legally married to his partner in Massachusetts. I grew up knowing this uncle was gay and never thinking anything odd or strange or uncomfortable about it. I have always struggled in understanding people’s discomfort with someone else’s life partner; gay, straight, or bi-sexual, and why they would think that they can belittle, judge or even have a legal say in someone else’s choice. I also never understood how the legalizing of same-sex marriage in Massachusetts was an important part in the repeal of Section 3 of DOMA, or truth be told what DOMA even was. When I was considering the topic for my paper I asked others to help me brainstorm and my boss was actually the one who suggested this topic. He was aware of my uncle’s passing and the fact that he was gay and knows how important he was and how I felt regarding his and his partners rights.
I am adamantly against both the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) as well as the legislation provided in Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA). I do not believe that a person’s sexual orientation should make any difference in what determines a loving marriage. I have personally witnessed two men who were married, legally in Massachusetts, who clearly loved one another and who were more respectful, supportive, and tender to one another than many of the “straight” married couples I know. I believe that same-sex marriage is often thought far more about and considered much more carefully than some straight marriages that I have been witness to. Many LGBT have long struggled with defining themselves in our world of labels, gay, straight, bi-sexual….and once having finally discovered what they believe they are, come out to family and friends, and spend in many cases, years, understanding what their new life looks like, are extremely comfortable and confident in themselves, making them better suited to make a life partner choice. To me this makes far more sense than some of the 20 year old “adults” that we see nowadays jumping straight into marriage and having children without ever having the experience of growing up fully and knowing how they fit into the world, and who in many cases end up divorced not many years later, creating yet another broken household. Many gay couples also spend many years considering the prospect of marriage, often far more than straight couples do, who once engaged in many cases are married within 15-18 months.
To construct my paper I will conduct research and reading on the topics of Same-sex Marriage. Same-sex marriage (also known as gay marriage) is defined as marriage between two persons of the same biological sex and/or gender identity. Legal recognition of same-sex marriage or the possibility to perform a same-sex marriage is sometimes referred to as marriage equality or equal marriage. In the United States, there is a rich history of opposition, and more recently acceptance of marriage equality, specifically with the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), including the repeal of Section 3 as well as with the Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA) and its failure to become law.
There are varying reasons for opposing views from my own, such as religious beliefs, legal opposition, personal opposition, and discomfort of the general unknown of what it means to be a Lesbian, Gay, Bi-Sexual or Trans-sexual (LGBT). There are also those who oppose it out of concern for a couple’s children, or possible future children. Some opponents have even gone as far as to make a case by stating “that redefining marriage to allow two men or two women to wed each other will weaken an institution set up across centuries and societies to protect women when they are pregnant and ensure that children's fathers take responsibility for them”, the reasons for opposition are great in number. However as stated the increase in support for marriage equality is ever growing, which can be shown by even just a quick Google search, or a quick visit to the University Libraries search query.
I will provide information from articles that express support and also criticism such as “Hillary Clinton Backs Same-Sex Marriage” published March 18th, 2013 in the NY Times and “Same-sex marriage leaves bishop behind” also published in the NY Times on June 15th, 2013. Information that I gather from books such as “Same sex relationships : from ‘odious crime’ to ‘gay marriage’ by Stephen Michael Cretney, and “Same sex, different states : when same-sex marriages cross state lines” by Andrew Koppelman. Key terms will be defined as well as any laws or rulings, that may be ambiguous, or unknown to readers.
My main research source location will ultimately be the Northeastern Library, the internet, newspaper articles as well as potential blogs and legal websites, some of which sources I spoke about earlier in this proposal. Another potential resource will be my local library and also online federal law information through the government’s website.
In conclusion I would like to provide background, support for, and against my personal view that Same-sex Marriage is no different and should not be held to any different standard than “straight” marriage. I believe that the majority of liberal Americans would feel more comfortable and be less opposed to something such as same-sex marriage if they understood it more and didn’t remain close minded. My hope is to bring more information to other’s regarding this topic and enlightening those who, like me, didn’t know much about DOMA and how it affects a growing population and an ever growing and highly debated topic.