Gay Rights and the Pursuit of Happiness

Written by: Steven L on May 18, 2009 7:31 PM EDT

                                            Gay Rights and the Pursuit of Happiness
                                                             Steven Lubrano

    
    We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.  These are the words that our nation was built on, yet it seems that they are only applied to a select few.  Why is it that in this age that we are not able to get past our differences and learn to accept each other as equals?  While we have given equal rights to virtually every group of people in America, gay are still regarded as inferior.  There is perhaps no group more universally oppressed than the homosexual community, the subject of hate crimes and humiliation.  

The word gay is now used as an insult, and the term “that’s so gay!” is used to describe something negative. If all men are created equal, then why are gays only allowed to marry in two states (Massachusetts and Connecticut, although a gay marriage bill was just approved by the Vermont state senate.) The declaration of independence ensues all people the rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, and yet the homosexual community has had all three of these rights violated.   It is appalling that gays are still being victimized and that their rights have become a political issue.

I remember seeing a website blocked as inappropriate by the school computer filter because of gay or lesbian activities.  The standard argument against gay marriage is that it would destroy the sanctity of traditional marriage, and yet, a traditional marriage was an institution between two whites that had to be approved by the subjects’ feudal overlord in which the woman would be entirely stripped of her rights.  So that argument really doesn’t hold water.  Many religious conservatives say that gay marriage is immoral and that it goes against the bible.  I believe that the quote they are referring to is Leviticus 20:13, which says: “If a man lies with another man, as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.” (Nothing about gays being banned from serving in the military)  Even ignoring the fact that America is a secular nation, the meaning of this quote is still ambiguous. 

The bible says that people should only have sex for the purpose of procreation; therefore a truly pious man would lie with a woman for the sole purpose of conception.  From this viewpoint the bible does not condemn gay marriage, as a man does not lie with another man to have children.  The bible also goes on to say in Leviticus 20:18 that a man who sees a sick or menstruating woman naked must be “cut off from among their people.”  The bible also says in Leviticus 15:20 that any furniture that a menstruating woman sits on is unclean and cannot be touched.   I doubt that many conservative lawmakers are following these laws to the letter, so what right do they have to use the bible to denounce someone else.  As Jesus said “let he who is without sin cast the first stone.”  The same Jesus who said to love your neighbor and treat others with kindness. 

Religious fanatics account for a significant portion of the anti-gay movement, but what about the other non-religious opponents of gay rights.  I was talking to a secular conservative friend of mine and I asked him why he was against gay rights.  After much plying on my part he finally admitted that the reason was sheer homophobia.  His answer astounded me; I never imagined that someone could be so willing to destroy the lifestyle of an entire people just because they are uncomfortable with the idea of homosexuality.  He basically summed it up by saying something to the effect of “I don’t care what they do in private, but I don’t want to have to hear about it.”

But there is a third group in this equation:  the people who don’t have any real problem with homosexuals but persecute them because it’s convenient, because they are such an easy scapegoat.  The most famous of these people may be John Briggs, a California state legislator who sponsored a bill that would have banned homosexuals from working in public schools.  After the bills defeat Briggs allegedly admitted that he had nothing personal against gays and the Briggs initiative was “just business.”   

It is this unlikely coalition of religious fanatics, intolerant homophobics, and self-serving opportunists that has managed to consistently dismantle the rights of homosexuals and prevent them from getting the equality that they deserve.  The crusade against gay rights has been shockingly successful, manifested in the victory of the forces of bigotry when Proposition 8 passed in California this past November.  To many people, Proposition 8 was a stunning reversal in public gay rights sentiment, but in reality, it was nothing new.  In the past five years eleven states have voted to ban same sex unions, legislation was introduced in Texas that would prohibit homosexuals from being foster parents, and the Marriage Protection Act, which would have denied federal courts the ability to interfere with the Defense of Marriage Act, passed in the House, but fortunately not in the senate.  

While republicans are generally the leaders of the anti-gay crusade, they are not the only opponents of gay rights.  After the November election, three democrats in the New York state senate refused to vote for senator Malcolm Smith for majority leader due to his support for legalizing gay marriage.  At the same time, former republican Rhode Island senator Lincoln Chafee is an avid supporter of same sex marriage, and Pennsylvania republican senator Arlen Specter has come out in support of civil unions.  Furthermore, log cabin republicans(gay republican voters) can be a powerful political force and have helped to elect several moderate and pro-gay rights republicans.  The controversy over gay rights is not an issue of democrat against republican, but an issue of compassion against hate, equality against intolerance, and good against evil.

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