Gay Marriage

Our right’s are secured by the United States Constitution, and no religion nor discriminatory discomfort has the right to impose inequality. History has shown us that it is the Court’s duty to correct any inequalities found, in order to progress towards a more equal and tolerant society. Without doing so in the past, our laws would continue to discriminate against blacks, women, and many other groups. Amending the Constitution to define marriage solely as between a man and a woman would violate the 14th amendment’s equal protection clause, and deconstruct legislation, long in the making, which helped to ensure equal rights for all Americans.

The Declaration of Independence states that “government’s long established should not be changed for light and transient issues”. One might question whether this is a light issue, but it’s transience is obvious. Past legislation based upon transient feelings has always been repealed, we should learn from our mistakes. Commonly perceived as unacceptable during the late 1960s, legislation was passed to forbid interracial marriages in many southern states. In the present society, one should indubitably recognize how these laws discriminated and were unconstitutional. The same thoughts will apply to the prohibition of gay marriages in the future, if an amendment were to pass restricting it today.

The biblical definition of marriage can only be argued on a church by church level, getting a definition from the government which is constitutionally acceptable is difficult. The Defense of Marriage Act of 1997 attempted to finally provide a more clear definition of what marriage is, and where it can and can’t be sustained. It defined marriage as “a bond between a man and a woman”, and allowed states the ability to disregard or honor same sex licenses issued in other states. This act never specifically disallowed gay marriages, but rather specifically defines marriage. This law is was unconstitutional the day it was passed because it conflicts the Full Faith in Credit article in the Constitution. The original intent of the Constitution was to protect people from being exploited by unreasonable laws.

The concept of Federalism originally proposed by the Framers of the Constitution, was a structure designed to balance the power of state and national government. Any power not given specifically