Gay and Lesbian Same Sex Marriage is a Civil Right :: Gay and Lesbian Marriage Must Be Legal

Interracial marriage is a topic that has been out of the national limelight for quite some time because most people in the United States have grown to accept it. When the Supreme Court ruled for the right for couples to marry interracially in 1967, they called the laws preventing interracial marriage nothing more than an attempt "to maintain white supremacy" (Stoddard 413). The conclusion of the United States Supreme court was that because laws against interracial marriage served no purpose other than discrimination, they should be eliminated. The modern gay rights movement has sparked a similar controversy among lawmakers; The question of whether or not same sex marriages should be legal in the United States. In the aforementioned case, the Supreme Court ruled that marriage is "one of the basic civil rights of man...[and is] essential to the orderly pursuit of happiness" (Stoddard 413). Despite this decision that has been standing for more than thirty years that clearly states that marriage is a basic civil right, there has been widespread controversy about same sex marriage. The opposition to this basic right has been met by opposition with weak arguments such as: Citing Judeo/Christian legend saying that homosexuality is wrong; saying that since same sex couples could not reproduce, they should not be allowed to marry; the term "same sex marriage" is a contradiction in terms because the word "marriage" implies the union of a man and a woman. Amongst others, these are the fleeting arguments against same sex marriag e. These are attempts of people who are trying to maintain a heterosexual supremacy, the very same ideal of "white supremacy" that the Supreme Court ruled was unconstitutional in 1967. Like the laws against interracial marriage once did, the laws that exist today against same sex marriage serve no purpose other than that of discrimination. These unjust laws should be abolished. The source of much of the discrimination against same sex marriage is rooted in religious beliefs. It is almost impossible to hear a conservative politician talking about the subject of same sex marriage without a reference to The Bible. The infamous reference that has so many jumping at the throat of homosexual marriage is in the book of Leviticus, and it reads: "The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Speak to the Israelite people and say to them: .