Deliberative Democracy: Should All States Legalize Gay Marriage, or Individually?

So here I'm arguing that we should use deliberative democracy when considering whether each state should legalize gay marriage, or if the whole country should. (For those who don't know what deliberative democracy is, in basic terms: popular vote.) Comment, if you will!

Katrina


Some people don’t know what they should believe in or agree with in this country. A pletora of people in the United States have no opinions what so ever on most political topics. However, somehow people always have opinions of gay marriage. Marriage is the most extreme and fullest way that you can show your love to somebody. Homosexual relationships are increasingly gaining acceptance in this country; however, these couples have not been permitted to marry. This is shown in deliberative democracy, because it is a system of political decision-making that relies on popular consultation to make policy, rules, or laws. It’s not like the electoral college in this sense. Some states have considered a new form of commitment called a "civil union", which essentially is marriage without using the word "marriage". Many politicians have said they are against gay marriage but I believe it should be left up to each personal state to decide. However, the "full faith and credit" clause of the Constitution says that if one state makes a law, other states must recognize it. This in effect allows one state to make same-sex marriage legal in the entire country. Many politicians are calling for amendments to their state constitution or the U.S. Constitution. The thing about the whole each state getting to vote whether they want to legalize gay marriage in their state is what the Defense of Marriage act prevents. Lost in all the legal battles and political maneuvering is the basic question "Should gay couples be allowed to legally get married?"

Homosexuality is an accepted lifestyle nowadays with most evidence proving biological causation. According to www.balancedpolitics.org, “for too long homosexuality has been considered a form of "deviant sexual behavior". Those making these accusations should examine the history books and the psychological research. Throughout our history going all the way back to ancient Greece, homosexual relationships have existed.” I learned in my rhetoric of communication class last year that during the time of ancient Greece, younger men would have sex with the older men to gain “wisdom” through the homosexual sex. We know that gay sex doesn’t mean that one will become wiser. The term "lesbian" comes from a Greek island called "Lesbos" where many such couples lived. An overwhelming amount of research has been done showing that homosexuality has a biological causation. It is not a genetic one, but a biological one. People don’t choose to just become a homosexual, considering all the struggle they’ve had to overcome in many past years. Now, there will be odd cases where people experiment with different types of sex, but you can't just teach people to be gay or not gay for a lifetime. It just doesn’t work like that. You can’t choose or teach someone how to be a homosexual, just as much as you can’t choose or teach someone how to be a heterosexual as well. They are born like that; they don’t choose it.

Denying homosexuals is a violation of religious freedom since civil and religious marriages are two separate institutions. The main reason for denying marriage to gay couples is that all major religions consider homosexuality a sin. However, the First Amendment of the Constitution clearly states that a person's religious views or lack thereof must be protected. Marriage by the state is a secular activity, and the government cannot start making laws just because a religion says they should. Homosexual marriages doesn't hurt society or anyone in particular. A marriage is a relationship between two people. How does it hurt society or people not involved in the marriage? It’s this easy: it can’t. It is a personal commitment that really is no one else's business. Society shouldn't be dictating what two people can or can't do when no one else is hurt in the process. If the church or certain groups disapprove, that's their right, but it isn't their right to stop it. The church doesn’t have to be the one to marry the homosexuals; they can do it somewhere else if it is really that big of a deal. I think us as the American public should all walk in their shoes, and we should consider how the homosexuals feel about this subject. This is one way that deliberative democracy can really show to be useful and it is a productive means of communication. I say this because with the idea that deliberative democracy also as a means of popular vote, I think many more states, or the entire country, would have gay marriage legalized.