Week 9 Day 7 Final Expository Essay

Curtis Little
COM/150 Effective Essay Writing
Week 9 Day 7 Final Expository Essay
November 7th, 2010
Kathryn Geranios
Gay Rights Expository Essay
Even though some people believe that being homosexual is a choice made by an individual either as a way to rebel or as a perversion, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender community (LGBT) deserve the same rights that heterosexuals are entitled to. Rights such as the right to be married in more than just a few states and the right to openly serve in the military without the fear of being discharged. Lately there have been several news stories that involve the LGBT in some way, the biggest being the teens that committed suicide because of bullying in school or over the Internet. It is stories like these that make a person wonder if there will ever be a day that the LGBT are accepted or at least be left alone to live their own lives as they are. So many people are being discharged from the military because the word got out that they are homosexual, including officers that have been in the military for years. This should not be allowed to go on. These men have literally been risking their lives for years for no reason but pride in their country and they are discharged because they are seen unfit to serve the country. Gay rights is a big topic in the United States right now and is the main focus of this expository essay.

The LGBT community deserves the same rights that everyone else is entitled to. According to research, in 1779, Thomas Jefferson proposed a law on any gay man or gay woman that, if broken, would mean the men would be castrated and the women 's nose cartilage would be mutilated (Head, 2010). The U.S. Supreme Court finally put a stop to laws like these after enforcing them for 224 years (Head, 2010). In 1951 the first national gay rights organization was founded, but because of the times it was too dangerous and not to mention illegal so they had to meet in code (Head, 2010). In 1969 the gay rights movement really accelerated, after raiding a gay bar in Greenwich Village and arresting employees and drag performers the NYPD got more than they bargained for, a crowd of more than 2,000 gay, lesbian, and transgender supporters of the bar took on the police and forced them into the bar which caused a three-day long riot. Since then there have been several presidents and businesses that have "come out" as supporters of gay rights. There were states that started to let gays get married and some that started to then took it away such as California recently.

One would think that of all the rights that should automatically be given to the LGBT, the right to openly serve in the military would be at the top. However, that isn 't the case. Many men and women have been discharged from the military for simply being proud of who they are. Some of whom served in the military for years, risking their lives to keep America safe. America 's history has had several different policies when it comes to homosexuals in the military. Before World War II there were no written policies against homosexuals serving in the military, except that sodomy was thought as a crime by military law ever since the Revolutionary War times (Powers,2010). However, during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War, homosexuality was defined as a mental defect and all homosexuals were barred from serving based on medical problems (Powers, 2010). In 1982 the Department of Defense actually came out saying that "homosexuality was incompatible with military service," in a DOD directive causing nearly 17,000 men and women to be discharged during the 1980s (Powers, 2010). By the end of this decade, several homosexuals of the military publically came out and challenged their discharges through the legal system and by the beginning of 1993 it appeared that the military 's ban on homosexual personnel would soon be overturned (Powers,2010). After a long debate and congressional hearings President Clinton and Senator Sam Nunn reached a compromise which they called "Don 't Ask, Don 't Tell, Don 't Pursue", under its terms those serving in the military will not be asked about their sexual orientation and would not be discharged simply for being homosexual. However, having sexual relations, or displaying any sort of attraction to the same sex, or telling any other military personnel about their sexual orientation is considered "homosexual conduct" under the policy and is a basis for involuntary discharge (Powers, 2010). As of right now "Don 't Ask, Don 't Tell" remains in effect, and will continue to for awhile it seems. President Obama is taking a different stance on the issue and instead of facing the problem head-on is putting it aside for a later date (Powers,2010). I have faith that one day, maybe not in my generation or lifetime, but someday the LGBT community will be given the rights that they are entitled to as "free" Americans.

Although this essay is focused mainly on the fight for gay rights in the United States alone, people need to understand that the LGBT is fighting for their rights all over the world. In Spain, where the kings and queens were once the biggest defenders of the Christian religion, the socialist government has launched a reform that will grant gays and lesbians the right to legal get married and adopt (Graff, 2004). Even though Europe has a long tradition of protecting gay rights, Denmark was actually the first to introduce registered partnerships between homosexual couples in 1989 (Graff, 2004). The Dutch finally legalized same-sex marriage in 2001 (Graff, 2004). So why can 't the United States? Why are we so far behind in the times? The United States, however, is surprisingly not the worst country when it comes to legalizing gay rights. Spain is actually where the fight is fiercest, even though the government will allow homosexual couples to marry and adopt children, the Church has called on Spanish Catholics to help fight the legislation (Graff, 2004). Which isn 't anywhere near as bad as Italy, where the Italian parliament has passed one of the harshest assisted-fertility laws in Europe that bans donor sperm, donor eggs, and surrogate motherhood, all of which homosexual couples can take advantage of to have children, and limits assisted-fertility treatments to "stable" heterosexual couples (Graff, 2004). In the United States, same-sex couples couldn 't wed anywhere in the country until 2004. But now, same-sex marriage is legal in six states: Vermont, Iowa, Maine, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire (Vestal,2009). Currently, the United States is divided on whether or not to redefine marriage. The California Supreme Court approved the voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage but in turn allowed the 18,000 homosexual couples that had married before Proposition 8 took effect to continue to legally be married (Vestal, 2009). On top of this, twenty-nine other states have voter-approved prohibitions that block same-sex marriage in their state 's constitution to try and keep the judges from overturning the bans on same-sex marriage. In polls, a very large amount of Americans are still against equal marriage rights for the LGBT, but these margins are getting smaller (Vestal,2009). If gays continue to be denied these rights they miss out on benefits that heterosexual couples are automatically entitled to. The National Organization for Women (2003) stated, "Same-sex couples across the country are denied more than 1,000 federal protections and rights. Most states deny committed lesbian and gay couples hundreds of additional benefits. These rights range from the ability to file joint tax returns to the crucial responsibility of making decisions on a partner 's behalf in a medical emergency."

In conclusion, some people do think that being homosexual is a perversion or a way for their teen or family member to rebel against their parents. This is just not true, loving someone, whether of the same sex or not, is not something that can be controlled or stopped. Heterosexual couples love without reason, why can 't same-sex couples? People cannot help who they are attracted to, so why should they be punished for it? What can be done about this? Getting the word out that acceptance is as simple as keeping religion out of the topic altogether. Some people 's opinions are based on what they think is written the Bible and use passages from the Bible to back up their case. However, religion is supposed to be kept out of the courtroom so why is this topic an exception to that rule? If a person has a homosexual man or woman that has recently come out in their family, they should support them, help them through this difficult time don 't condemn them. In the long run it will do more damage to that person if they don 't have someone to support them or someone to trust through a change this big.

References:

Powers, R.(2010). An Overview of the Don 't Ask Don 't Tell Policy. Don 't Ask Don 't Tell-The Military Policy on Gays. Retrieved from http://usmilitary.about.com/od/millegislation/a/dontask.htm

Graff, J.(2004). The Fight Over Gay Rights. Time Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,733764,00.html

Head,T.(2010). The American Gay Rights Movement. Retrieved from: http://civilliberty.about.com/od/gendersexuality/tp/History-Gay-Rights-Movement.htm

Vestal,C.(2009). Gay Marriage Legal in Six States. Retrieved from http://www.stateline.org/live/details/story?contentId=347390

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Curtis Little COM/150 Effective Essay Writing Week 9 [Write out numbers under 10] Day [If used as an adjective, these two words are hyphenated] 7 [Write out numbers under 10] Final Expository Essay November 7th, 2010 Kathryn Geranios Gay Rights Expository Essay Even though some people believe that being homosexual is a choice made by an individual either as a way to rebel or as a perversion, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender community (LGBT) deserve the same rights that heterosexuals are entitled [The passive voice is a form of "be" (are) and a participle (entitled ). Over-use of the passive voice can make paragraphs officious and tedious to read. Try to use the active voice most often; for example, passive voice = The paper was completed on time. Active voice = the student completed the paper on time--See eCampus > Center for Writing Excellence > Tutorials & Guides > Grammar & Writing Guides > Active & passive voice] to. [Avoid using "at" or "to" at the end of sentence; this is informal grammar] Rights such as the right to be married [Passive voice] in more than just a few states and the right to openly serve [Doctoral rule (but good advice for any academic writer)--avoid a split infinitive; consider placing the adverb (openly) before or after the infinitive (to serve )--try "openly to serve " or "to serve openly" (or place "openly" later in the sentence)] in the military without the fear of being discharged. [Passive voice] Lately there have been several news stories that involve the LGBT in some way, the biggest being the teens that committed suicide because of bullying in school or over the Internet. It is stories like these that make a person wonder if there will ever be a day that the LGBT are accepted or at least be left alone to live their [Check pronoun agreement--if "their" refers to "person" (or a singular subject), it should be singular, too (his or her)] own lives as they [Check pronoun agreement--if "they" refers to "person" (or a singular subject), it should be singular, too (he or she) and perhaps require adjusting the following verb] are. So many people are being discharged [Passive voice] from the military because the word got [Doctoral rule (although good advice for any academic writer)--instead of using "get," which can mean many things, more formal is to use forms of "receive," "obtain," "arrive at," "can," "could," "grow," "able to," etc.] out that they are homosexual, including officers that have been in the military for years. This should not be allowed to go on. These men have literally [Beware: this word if used to mean "figuratively" is incorrect. "Literal" means "actual, real." Avoid using this word to add emphasis] been [Doctoral-level comment (also recommended for any academic writer)--do not divide two-part verb beginning with has/have/had. Try to place "literally" before or after the two-part verb (have been)--"literally have been" or "have been literally" (or place "literally" later in the sentence)] risking their lives for years for no reason but pride in their country and they are [Run-on sentence: place comma before "and"] discharged [Passive voice] because they are seen unfit to serve the country. Gay rights is a big topic in the United States right now ["Now" is a difficult word. Because this is being read some time after you wrote it, "now" is ambiguous. If you mean "as of the present time" (Since the revolution, George is now king), you can simply leave out "now" = Since the revolution, George is king. If the time or date is important, fill it in] and is the main focus of [The preposition should be "on"] this expository essay. The LGBT community deserves the same rights that everyone else is entitled [Passive voice] to. [Avoid using "at" or "to" at the end of sentence; this is informal grammar] According to research, in 1779, Thomas Jefferson proposed a law on any gay man or gay woman that, [Check word usage--If this word refers to a human being, people are never "that" or "which," they are "who"] if broken, would [Remove comma] mean the men would be castrated [Passive voice] and the women 's nose cartilage would be mutilated [Passive voice] (Head, 2010). The U.S. Supreme Court finally put a stop to laws like these after enforcing them for 224 years (Head, 2010). In 1951 the first national gay rights organization was founded, [Passive voice] but because of the times it was too dangerous and not to mention illegal so they had to meet in code (Head, 2010). In 1969 the gay rights movement really [Clearer writing suggestion--"real" or "really" means "existing in actuality"--it adds little to the meaning (and using it to mean "big," "very," or "genuine" is slang); replace it with a more expressive word] accelerated, after raiding a gay bar in Greenwich Village and arresting employees and drag performers the NYPD got more than they bargained for, [Remove comma after a conjunction as first word in a sentence unless it precedes a parenthetical phrase] a crowd of more than 2,000 gay, lesbian, and transgender supporters of the bar took on the police and forced them into the bar which [Use "that" for a restrictive phrase (or place a comma before "which")] caused a three-day long riot. [A sentence as long as this (50 or more words) can be confusing because it can have logic twists, recursions, or long lists. Cut it into shorter sentences, each with a single idea. Shorter sentences are easier to comprehend] Since then there have been several presidents and businesses that have "come out" as supporters of gay rights. There were ["There were" is an awkward phrase if "there" is not clearly a location] states that started to let gays get married and [Check punctuation--place comma before "and" if what follows is an independent clause (could be a sentence by itself)--See eCampus > Library > Center for Writing Excellence > Grammar Guides > Mechanics > Run-ons] some that started to then took it away such as California recently. One would think that of all the rights that should automatically be given [Passive voice] to the LGBT, the right to openly serve [split infinitive] in the military would be at the top. However, that isn 't [Contractions are inappropriate in academic writing--write it out] the case. Many men and women have been discharged [Passive voice] from the military for simply being proud of who they are. Some of whom served in the military for years, risking their lives to keep America safe. America 's history has had several different [Redundancy: if you have "several," surely they are "different." Remove "different"] policies when it comes to [Clearer writing suggestion--Since "it" is undefined, "when it comes to" often can be reduced to simply "concerning" ] homosexuals in the military. Before World War II there were no written policies against homosexuals serving in the military, except that sodomy was thought as a crime by military law ever since the Revolutionary War times (Powers,2010 [Leave a space after the comma] ). However, during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War, homosexuality was defined [Passive voice] as a mental defect and all homosexuals were barred [Passive voice] from serving based on medical problems (Powers, 2010). In 1982 the Department of Defense actually [Cliché: "actual" and "actually" are weak words whose meaning is nothing more than "in point of fact." They are often used as intensifiers but usually can be deleted with no change in meaning ] came out saying that "homosexuality was incompatible with military service," in a DOD directive causing nearly 17,000 men and women to be discharged [Passive voice] during the 1980s (Powers, 2010). By the end of this decade, several homosexuals of the military publically came out and challenged their discharges through the legal system and by the beginning of 1993 it appeared that the military 's ban on homosexual personnel would soon be overturned [Passive voice] (Powers,2010 [Leave a space after the comma] ). After a long debate and congressional hearings President Clinton and Senator Sam Nunn reached a compromise which [Use "that" for a restrictive phrase (or place a comma before "which")] they called "Don 't Ask, Don 't Tell, Don 't Pursue", [A period or comma goes inside the closing quotation mark] under its terms those serving in the military will not be asked about their sexual orientation and would not be discharged [Passive voice] simply for being homosexual. However, having [Clearer writing suggestion--"having" as a transitive verb is vague. Reconsider the sentence using "possessing," "acquiring," "developing," etc. Often "having" can simply be deleted] sexual relations, or displaying any sort of attraction to the same sex, or telling any other military personnel about their sexual orientation is considered "homosexual conduct" under the policy and is a basis for involuntary discharge (Powers, 2010). As of right now "Don 't Ask, Don 't Tell" remains in effect, and will [Remove comma before "and" (if the following is not a complete clause or the last element in a series)] continue to for awhile [This word is considered a solecism (something awkward, incorrect, or out of place)--use "a while"] it seems. President Obama is taking a different stance on the issue and instead of facing the problem head-on is putting it aside for a later date (Powers,2010 [Leave a space after the comma] ). I have faith that one day, maybe not in my generation or lifetime, but someday the LGBT community will be given [Passive voice] the rights that they are entitled [Passive voice] to as "free" Americans. Although this essay is focused [Passive voice] mainly on the fight for gay rights in the United States alone, people need to understand that the LGBT is fighting for their rights all over the world. In Spain, where the kings and queens were once the biggest defenders of the Christian religion, the socialist government has launched a reform that will grant gays and lesbians the right to legal get married and adopt (Graff, 2004). Even though Europe has a long tradition of protecting gay rights, Denmark was actually [see above] the first to introduce registered partnerships between homosexual couples in 1989 (Graff, 2004). The Dutch finally legalized same-sex marriage in 2001 (Graff, 2004). So why can 't [Contractions are inappropriate in academic writing--write it out] the United States? [Unless in a quote or a title, avoid rhetorical questions in academic writing] Why are we [Use "we," "us," or "our" to mean yourself and coauthors, not general humanity (or yourself and the reader)] so far behind in the times? The United States, however, is surprisingly not the worst country when it comes to [concerning] legalizing gay rights. Spain is actually [see above] where the fight is fiercest, even though the government will allow homosexual couples to marry and adopt children, the Church has called on Spanish Catholics to help fight the legislation (Graff, 2004). Which [Check the sentence--beginning with "Which," if it is not a question, it is probably a sentence fragment] isn 't [Contractions are inappropriate in academic writing--write it out] anywhere near as bad as Italy, where the Italian parliament has passed one of the harshest assisted-fertility laws in Europe that bans donor sperm, donor eggs, and surrogate motherhood, all of which homosexual couples can take advantage of to have children, and limits assisted-fertility treatments to "stable" heterosexual couples (Graff, 2004). [Sentence too long] In the United States, same-sex couples couldn 't [Contractions are inappropriate in academic writing--write it out] wed anywhere in the country until 2004. But [In academic writing, avoid starting a sentence with a conjunction ] now, same-sex marriage is legal in six states: Vermont, Iowa, Maine, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire (Vestal,2009 [Leave a space after the comma] ). Currently, the United States is divided [Passive voice] on whether or not to redefine marriage. The California Supreme Court approved the voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage but in turn allowed the 18,000 homosexual couples that had married before Proposition 8 [Write out numbers under 10] took effect to continue to legally be [split infinitive] married [Passive voice] (Vestal, 2009). On top of this, twenty-nine [Express numbers higher than nine in digits (if not the first word in the sentence)] other states have voter-approved prohibitions that block same-sex marriage in their state 's constitution [If this refers to the United States Constitution, capitalize it, whether or not it is preceded by "the U.S."] to try and [correct usage is "try to"] keep the judges from overturning the bans on same-sex marriage. In polls, a very large amount of Americans are still against equal marriage rights for the LGBT, but these margins are getting smaller (Vestal,2009 [Leave a space after the comma] ). If gays continue to be denied [Passive voice] these rights they miss out on benefits that heterosexual couples are automatically entitled to. [Avoid using "at" or "to" at the end of sentence; this is informal grammar] The National Organization for Women (2003) stated, "Same-sex couples across the country are denied more than 1,000 federal protections and rights. Most states deny committed lesbian and gay couples hundreds of additional benefits. These rights range from the ability to file joint tax returns to the crucial responsibility of making decisions on a partner 's behalf in a medical emergency." In conclusion, some people do think that being homosexual is a perversion or a way for their teen or family member to rebel against their [his or her] parents. This is just not true, loving someone, whether of the same sex or not, is not something that can be controlled [Passive voice] or stopped. Heterosexual couples love without reason, why can 't [Contractions are inappropriate in academic writing--write it out] same-sex couples? People cannot help who they are attracted to, so why should they be punished [Passive voice] for it? What can be done about this? Getting the word out that acceptance is as simple as keeping religion out of the topic altogether. Some people 's opinions are based [Passive voice] on what they think is written the Bible and use passages from the Bible to back up their case. However, religion is supposed [Passive voice] to be kept out of the courtroom so why is this topic an exception to that rule? If a person has a homosexual man or woman that [Check word usage--If this word refers to a human being, people are never "that" or "which," they are "who"] has recently come out in their [his or her] family, they [he or she] should support them, help them [Check pronoun agreement--if "them" refers to "person" (or a singular subject), it should be singular, too (him or her)] through this difficult time don 't [Contractions are inappropriate in academic writing--write it out] condemn them. In the long run [Cliché--"In the long run" is an old phrase, seen too often, and marks your writing as unoriginal. Try to express the idea in another way] it will do more damage to that person if they [Place comma before this word if this is the end of the introductory phrase (beginning with "In")] [he or she] don 't [Contractions are inappropriate in academic writing--write it out] have someone to support them [him or her] or someone to trust through a change this big.

References: Powers, R.(2010). An Overview of the Don 't [Contractions are inappropriate in academic writing--write it out] Ask Don 't [Contractions are inappropriate in academic writing--write it out] Tell Policy. Don 't [Contractions are inappropriate in academic writing--write it out] Ask Don 't [Contractions are inappropriate in academic writing--write it out] Tell-The Military Policy on Gays. Retrieved from http://usmilitary.about.com/od/millegislation/a/dontask.htm Graff, J.(2004). The Fight Over Gay Rights. Time Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,733764,00.html Head,T.(2010). The American Gay Rights Movement. Retrieved from: [Because the preceding words indicate that a series or "answer" follows, remove colon] http://civilliberty.about.com/od/gendersexuality/tp/History-Gay-Rights-Movement.htm Vestal,C.(2009). Gay Marriage Legal in Six States. Retrieved from http://www.stateline.org/live/details/story?contentId=347390

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Rights such as the right to be married in more than just a few states and the right to openly serve in the military without the fear of being discharged. Lately there have been several news stories that involve the LGBT in some way, the biggest being the teens that committed suicide because of bullying in school or over the Internet. It is stories like these that make a person wonder if there will ever be a day that the LGBT are accepted or at least be left alone to live their own lives as they are. So many people are being discharged from the military because the word got out that they are homosexual, including officers that have been in the military for years. This should not be allowed to go on. These men have literally been risking their lives for years for no reason but pride in their country and they are discharged because they are seen unfit to serve the country. Gay rights is a big topic in the United States right now and is the main focus of this expository essay. The LGBT community deserves the same rights that everyone else is entitled to. According to research, in 1779, Thomas Jefferson proposed a law on any gay man or gay woman that, if broken, would mean the men would be castrated and the women 's nose cartilage would be mutilated (Head, 2010). The U.S. Supreme Court finally put a stop to laws like these after enforcing them for 224 years (Head, 2010). In 1951 the first national gay rights organization was founded, but because of the times it was too dangerous and not to mention illegal so they had to meet in code (Head, 2010). In 1969 the gay rights movement really accelerated, after raiding a gay bar in Greenwich Village and arresting employees and drag performers the NYPD got more than they bargained for, a crowd of more than 2,000 gay, lesbian, and transgender supporters of the bar took on the police and forced them into the bar which caused a three-day long riot. Since then there have been several presidents and businesses that have "come out" as supporters of gay rights. There were states that started to let gays get married and some that started to then took it away such as California recently. One would think that of all the rights that should automatically be given to the LGBT, the right to openly serve in the military would be at the top. However, that isn 't the case. Many men and women have been discharged from the military for simply being proud of who they are. Some of whom served in the military for years, risking their lives to keep America safe. America 's history has had several different policies when it comes to homosexuals in the military. Before World War II there were no written policies against homosexuals serving in the military, except that sodomy was thought as a crime by military law ever since the Revolutionary War times (Powers,2010). However, during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War, homosexuality was defined as a mental defect and all homosexuals were barred from serving based on medical problems (Powers, 2010). In 1982 the Department of Defense actually came out saying that "homosexuality was incompatible with military service," in a DOD directive causing nearly 17,000 men and women to be discharged during the 1980s (Powers, 2010). By the end of this decade, several homosexuals of the military publically came out and challenged their discharges through the legal system and by the beginning of 1993 it appeared that the military 's ban on homosexual personnel would soon be overturned (Powers,2010). After a long debate and congressional hearings President Clinton and Senator Sam Nunnreached a compromise which they called "Don 't Ask, Don 't Tell, Don 't Pursue", under its terms those serving in the military will not be asked about their sexual orientation and would not be discharged simply for being homosexual. However, having sexual relations, or displaying any sort of attraction to the same sex, or telling any other military personnel about their sexual orientation is considered "homosexual conduct" under the policy and is a basis for involuntary discharge (Powers, 2010). As of right now "Don 't Ask, Don 't Tell" remains in effect, and will continue to for awhile it seems. President Obama is taking a different stance on the issue and instead of facing the problem head-on is putting it aside for a later date (Powers,2010). I have faith that one day, maybe not in my generation or lifetime, but someday the LGBT community will be given the rights that they are entitled to as "free" Americans. Although this essay is focused mainly on the fight for gay rights in the United States alone, people need to understand that the LGBT is fighting for their rights all over the world. In Spain, where the kings and queens were once the biggest defenders of the Christian religion, the socialist government has launched a reform that will grant gays and lesbians the right to legal get married and adopt (Graff, 2004). Even though Europe has a long tradition of protecting gay rights, Denmark was actually the first to introduce registered partnerships between homosexual couples in 1989 (Graff, 2004). The Dutch finally legalized same-sex marriage in 2001 (Graff, 2004). So why can 't the United States? Why are we so far behind in the times? The United States, however, is surprisingly not the worst country when it comes to legalizing gay rights. Spain is actually where the fight is fiercest, even though the government will allow homosexual couples to marry and adopt children, the Church has called on Spanish Catholics to help fight the legislation (Graff, 2004). Which isn 't anywhere near as bad as Italy, where the Italian parliament has passed one of the harshest assisted-fertility laws in Europe that bans donor sperm, donor eggs, and surrogate motherhood, all of which homosexual couples can take advantage of to have children, and limits assisted-fertility treatments to "stable" heterosexual couples (Graff, 2004). In the United States, same-sex couples couldn 't wed anywhere in the country until 2004. But now, same-sex marriage is legal in six states: Vermont, Iowa, Maine, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire (Vestal,2009). Currently, the United States is divided on whether or not to redefine marriage. The California Supreme Court approved the voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage but in turn allowed the 18,000 homosexual couples that had married before Proposition 8 took effect to continue to legally be married (Vestal, 2009). On top of this, twenty-nine other states have voter-approved prohibitions that block same-sex marriage in their state 's constitution to try and keep the judges from overturning the bans on same-sex marriage. In polls, a very large amount of Americans are still against equal marriage rights for the LGBT, but these margins are getting smaller (Vestal,2009). If gays continue to be denied these rights they miss out on benefits that heterosexual couples are automatically entitled to. The National Organization for Women (2003) stated, "Same-sex couples across the country are denied more than 1,000 federal protections and rights. Most states deny committed lesbian and gay couples hundreds of additional benefits. These rights range from the ability to file joint tax returns to the crucial responsibility of making decisions on a partner 's behalf in a medical emergency." In conclusion, some people do think that being homosexual is a perversion or a way for their teen or family member to rebel against their parents. This is just not true, loving someone, whether of the same sex or not, is not something that can be controlled or stopped. Heterosexual couples love without reason, why can 't same-sex couples? People cannot help who they are attracted to, so why should they be punished for it? What can be done about this? Getting the word out that acceptance is as simple as keeping religion out of the topic altogether. Some people 's opinions are based on what they think is written the Bible and use passages from the Bible to back up their case. However, religion is supposed to be kept out of the courtroom so why is this topic an exception to that rule? If a person has a homosexual man or woman that has recently come out in their family, they should support them, help them through this difficult time don 't condemn them. In the long run it will do more damage to that person if they don 't have someone to support them or someone to trust through a change this big. References: Powers, R.(2010). An Overview of the Don 't Ask Don 't Tell Policy. Don 't Ask Don 't Tell- The Military Policy on Gays. Retrieved from http://usmilitary.about.com/od/millegislation/a/dontask.htm Graff, J.(2004). The Fight Over Gay Rights. Time Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171, 733764 ,00.html Head ,T.( 2010). The American Gay Rights Movement. Retrieved from: http://civilliberty.about.com/od/gendersexuality/tp/History- Gay-Rights-Movement .htm Vestal,C.(2009). Gay Marriage Legal in Six States. Retrieved from http://www.stateline.org/live/details/story?contentId= 347390 Week 9 Day 7 Final Expository Essay 1 Curtis Little Week 9 Day 7 Final Expository Essay 2 Curtis Little Week 9 Day 7 Final Expository Essay 3 Curtis Little Week 9 Day 7 Final Expository Essay 4 Curtis Little Week 9 Day 7 Final Expository Essay 5 Curtis Little Week 9 Day 7 Final Expository Essay 6 Curtis Little Week 9 Day 7 Final Expository Essay 7 Curtis Little

References: Powers, R.(2010). An Overview of the Don 't Ask Don 't Tell Policy. Don 't Ask Don 't Tell- The Military Policy on Gays. Retrieved from http://usmilitary.about.com/od/millegislation/a/dontask.htm Graff, J.(2004). The Fight Over Gay Rights. Time Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171, 733764 ,00.html Head ,T.( 2010). The American Gay Rights Movement. Retrieved from: http://civilliberty.about.com/od/gendersexuality/tp/History- Gay-Rights-Movement .htm Vestal,C.(2009). Gay Marriage Legal in Six States. Retrieved from http://www.stateline.org/live/details/story?contentId= 347390 Week 9 Day 7 Final Expository Essay 1 Curtis Little Week 9 Day 7 Final Expository Essay 2 Curtis Little Week 9 Day 7 Final Expository Essay 3 Curtis Little Week 9 Day 7 Final Expository Essay 4 Curtis Little Week 9 Day 7 Final Expository Essay 5 Curtis Little Week 9 Day 7 Final Expository Essay 6 Curtis Little Week 9 Day 7 Final Expository Essay 7 Curtis Little