Same Sex Marriage

Same-Sex Marriages Same sex marriage, also known as gay marriage is the legal union between two people of the same gender. In the United States only six out of a possible fifty states allow legal same sex marriage making it harder for citizens to have the freedom to live how they choose. Homosexuality has been a controversial issue for centuries, mainly amongst the religious communities. There has been a push to change this biased law for many years, especially with those who it directly affects the most, homosexuals. If the U.S were to make same sex marriage legal in all fifty states would it really cause problems among society? The only way it would create problems, is amongst those who oppose it, but the U.S law cannot be biased to only a certain portion of their society. Denying gays the right to become legally married is showing the U.S defines their law based on religion, denies gays marriage and financial benefits and also denies same-sex couples the same opportunity to adopt children. Whether or not same sex couples obtain legal rights to become married it will not affect the stability of the United States’ customs. Therefore, the United States should allow legal same-sex marriages in all fifty states.
The U.S built their constitution based on fairness and equality and therefore they should abide by their amendments and allow same sex marriages. The very first amendment of the constitution of the United States says that: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."(Constitution of the United States) By not allowing those to become legally married in or outside of a religious ceremony it is “prohibiting free exercise of religion.” It is like denying a person of their religious beliefs. If a person were to believe in a certain religion then it is unfair to prohibit their free exercise of religion unless it is causing harm to society. By allowing gays to legally marry it wouldn’t hurt society, nor should affect people’s religious beliefs. It is the same as if the Hindu religion went against something that the Christian religion believes; it doesn’t mean our law can or should take away the religious freedoms of the Hindu’s. The United States is based upon the freedom of religious rights however, their law is being based around only the views of a few. If gay couples are allowed to have a civil union but are not allowed to become legally married it shows that the U.S is contradicting their constitution when it says that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religions or prohibiting the free exercise thereof” meaning that the law is not allowed to make a law respecting only around one religions beliefs. If religions such as Christianity, Islam, and Judaism etc. don’t agree with same sex marriages why should the U.S discriminate against the beliefs of other citizens? It is also denying their freedom, because if a couple, man and man or wife and wife, are not allowed to get legally wed because of their gender it is denying their freedom to express themselves as a legal couple. The United States society should abide by their constitution of equality for all people and therefore, should allow same sex marriages in all fifty states.
In Canada and most of New England same sex marriages are legal and those who are legally married can obtain the same marriage benefits as those of opposite sex marriages. In some states in the U.S civil unions and domestic partnerships were created so that same sex couples could obtain the 1,049 benefits that couples who were legally married could. However, in most states civil unions and domestic partnerships do not allow same sex couples the same opportunity to obtain the equal number of marriage benefits. The benefits are specially reserved for those in opposite sex couples. It is denying opportunities such as: joint adoption, joint parenting, joint custody/visitation, next-of-kin status for ill partners, joint insurance policies for home, auto and health, etc. A couple fall in love and get married. Whether or not it is a man and wife, two men or two wives they go through the same process and because the U.S is discriminating against gender and beliefs, same sex couples are not allowed to obtain the same financial and social benefits that religiously recognized married couples are. Therefore, the United States should allow same sex marriages, giving gays the chance to become legally married and receive helpful marriage benefits
When a couple gets married it creates the desire to start families. When a couple cannot procreate they turn to adoption. There are more than 200,000 children in the U.S who are thrown around in foster care until the age of 18. However, if the United States allowed same sex couples to obtain their legal marriage licenses then their desires to have families will increase and because same sex couples cannot procreate they will turn to adoption. It is better for a child to have parents rather than no parents at all. According to the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis Reporting System (AFCARS) there are approximately 547,000 children in Foster Care and only about 150,000 children who are eligible for adoption. Out of those 150,000 children only 20% of them are adopted each year. If the status of gay marriages changed and the U.S recognized same sex couples as having legitimate marital status then the rate of adoption will go up. Not only will the gay community be recognized as having legal marriage rights but by doing so will create more adoption opportunities for children. If the United States society accepts same-sex couples as legitimate married couples gays will feel more accepted as a part of society and less discriminated against. One of the main reasons gays do not want to adopt is because many people believe that when a child has same-sex parents, whether it is two mothers or two fathers, will affect the child mentally in the future. Studies have shown that there is no affect negatively but positively. NARTH (National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality) has studied this issue with 21 same-sex parented families since 1981, and studies have shown not only are their no disadvantages but more advantages than with opposite-sex parents. NARTH has concluded: “The new study by two University of Southern California sociologists says children with lesbian or gay parents show more empathy for social diversity, are less confined by gender stereotypes, and are probably more likely to explore homosexual activity themselves. Writing in recent issue of the American Sociological Review, the authors say that the emotional health of the two sets of children is essentially the same.”(NARTH) Therefore, because no harm is caused to the children by having gay parents, why should the U.S put a ban on same sex marriages? The United States should allow same-sex marriages in all fifty states to increase the level of desire amongst gay couples which will in the end lead to increased adoption rates.
The United States should change their law to allow legal gay marriage in all of the fifty states. By denying same-sex couples the right to become legally married it shows the U.S defines their law based on religion, denies gays the marriage and financial benefits and denies same-sex couples the same opportunities to adopt children. The issues of whether or not gays should be allowed to become legally married has been an ongoing conflict for many decades. In the U.S legal marriage or recognized civil unions and domestic partnerships of same-sex couples are allowed in six of the fifty states, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Vermont, and Washington DC. If the U.S allowed same-sex marriages it would not cause harm to society, but show that the United States is open to new changes that increase levels of fairness and equality amongst society in this new day and age.

Works Cited
Dicker, Sheryl, Elysa Gordon, and Jane Knitzer. “Improving the Odds for the Healthy Development of Young Children in Foster Care.” ITHCA. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Dec. 2010. <http://www.ithaca.edu/‌mbentley/‌pdf/‌dicker.pdf>.
“Same-Sex Marriage, Civil Unions and Domestic Partnerships.” NCSL(National Conference of Legislatures). N.p., Sept. 2010. Web. 16 Jan. 2011. <http://www.ncsl.org/‌default.aspx?tabid=16430>.
Shah, Dayna K. “Defense of Marriage Act: Update to Prior Report.” G.A.O. N.p., 23 Jan. 2004. Web. 16 Dec. 2010. <http://www.gao.gov/‌new.items/‌d04353r.pdf>.
United States Constitution. “United States Constitution.” Cornell University Law School . N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Dec. 2010. <http://topics.law.cornell.edu/‌constitution/‌billofrights>.
University of California Sociologists. “Gay Parenting Does Affect Children Differently, Study Finds -- Authors Believe Gay Parents Have ‘Some Advantages.’” NARTH(National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality). N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Dec. 2010. <http://www.narth.com/‌docs/‌does.html>.

Cited: Dicker, Sheryl, Elysa Gordon, and Jane Knitzer. “Improving the Odds for the Healthy Development of Young Children in Foster Care.” ITHCA. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Dec. 2010. <http://www.ithaca.edu/‌mbentley/‌pdf/‌dicker.pdf>. “Same-Sex Marriage, Civil Unions and Domestic Partnerships.” NCSL(National Conference of Legislatures). N.p., Sept. 2010. Web. 16 Jan. 2011. <http://www.ncsl.org/‌default.aspx?tabid=16430>. Shah, Dayna K. “Defense of Marriage Act: Update to Prior Report.” G.A.O. N.p., 23 Jan. 2004. Web. 16 Dec. 2010. <http://www.gao.gov/‌new.items/‌d04353r.pdf>. United States Constitution. “United States Constitution.” Cornell University Law School . N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Dec. 2010. <http://topics.law.cornell.edu/‌constitution/‌billofrights>. University of California Sociologists. “Gay Parenting Does Affect Children Differently, Study Finds -- Authors Believe Gay Parents Have ‘Some Advantages.’” NARTH(National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality). N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Dec. 2010. <http://www.narth.com/‌docs/‌does.html>.