by guest blogger Patrice G.
The government continues to communicate through law the message the United States does not agree with same-sex marriage. Despite multiple states currently allowing same-sex marriage to take place, DOMA-The Defense of Marriage Act prevents the federal government from giving them any benefits. Takako Ueda from Japan faces deportation because of DOMA and her same-sex marriage. Ueda and her partner Frances Herbert are outraged at how the government is "discriminating" against them and other same-sex couples, but is it really discriminating when the government is trying to protect the value of the sanctity of male-female marriage?
Couldn't same-sex marriages taking place be considered discrimination against male-female marriages? How do you view same-sex marriage and male-female marriage? Do you think the government has a right to continue to communicate disgust with same-sex marriage, in order, to glorify male-female marriage?
Everyone is entitled to their opinion right? What are your thoughts?
Below are two links pertaining to the same couple on CNN.com:
http://www.cnn.com/video/?hpt=hp_t3#/video/us/2012/02/21/vt-lesbian-couple-faces-deportation.wcax
Why is discriminating in quotes while values is not. Is the government protecting "values." Whose values? Are mine the same as yours?
ReplyDeleteMarriage is not natural. DOMA should not exist. Male/Female is just as unnatural as male/male as male/female/male/female/male/male.
What if we only give rights to polygamous relationships. If you can get two or more people to marry and live together in harmony then you deserve government benefits.
If you want some more CNN articles have this one for proof
http://www.cnn.com/2010/OPINION/07/27/ryan.promiscuity.normal/index.html
For some peer reviewed information about it try
The Establishment and Maintenance of Socially Imposed Monogamy in Western Europe by Kevin MacDonald in Politics and Life Sciences
Discriminate against male/female and male/male and female/female. Make them all illegal. Marriage is not a value everyone in the US upholds.
First and foremost, I think it's absurd to publish something like this on a blog called "Ending Oppression". To suggest that giving gay people the chance to marry degrades straight marriage is tantamount to suggesting that giving interracial couples the right to marry degrades white marriage. This class is supposed to be about abolishing linguistic oppression, but instead we're fostering it here? These backwards views have no place in a modern day discourse.
ReplyDelete"Do you think the government has a right to continue to communicate disgust with same-sex marriage, in order, to glorify male-female marriage?"
If you paid attention to the news you'd be aware of the fact that the "government" has stopped "communicating disgust" with same-sex marriage. Obama ordered the Justice Department to stop defending DOMA (Your use of that metonymic phrase "the government" is incredibly misleading here, by the way. It's not a singular entity vis a vis gay rights. Although, that's probably the least of our worries here).
Seriously, in one post you've implied that an oppressed group is the one doing the oppressing and also implied that that group is disgusting. You have a right to alienate your classmates and make people feel uncomfortable, but you need to consider the fact that you are using hate speech and be mindful of the consequences of those words.
I read an article a few days ago about this same type of question. That is, does extending civil liberties to one group (specifically gays) infringe on the rights of another. There were a few interesting comments from other users. One user stated:
ReplyDelete"Giving someone else equal rights does not infringe or take away rights from you. It just makes it illegal to enforce your prejudice and hate. It's that simple."
Another user addressed the concerns of religious individuals, especially socially-conservative Christians who generally oppose same-sex marriage (and homosexuality more broadly). She said:
"Claiming that someone else’s marriage is against your religion is like being angry with someone for eating a donut because you’re on a diet."