The 28th Amendment: Freedom of Marriage

From the moment we gain true cognitive ability and become sensitive to the world around us, we learn who our parents are, who our siblings are, and what our house looks like. If we’re raised in a good environment, we quickly come to love the sanctuary of that place and the safety of its people. We cherish this family life and the ability to receive support from those around us; especially our parents. And it is not long before we start dreaming and imagining being able to provide for our own children with our own husband or wife. This is the typical family dream. Almost everyone has it, and in society, getting married and having a family is encouraged. That’s the natural way of life.

However, here in the United States of America, there are people who don’t have the freedom to marry the ones they love. They are told that their love is improper and that they cannot take the next step to express their emotions purely because of ancient beliefs that have been preached for thousands of years. The argument about same-sex marriage in this country has created a battleground between people who only want to love and zealous religious followers who can’t accept any other method but their own way of life. This country was founded with the freedom of religion, and that means that Jews, Christians, Catholics, Muslims, Buddhists, and anyone else all have equal liberty and freedom to celebrate their own way of life. It is this aspect of the argument against gay marriage that I cannot comprehend. There are people arguing that same-sex marriage is offensive to their religious views, yet they have nothing negative to say about their Jewish or Muslim neighbors. If they can get along so well with those guys, why can’t they just respect our country’s purpose of freedom for all and let same-sex marriage be?

I’d like to note that the option for non-religious weddings has been around for decades, and should thusly be entirely unoffensive to anyone who practices a particular faith. This country is supposed to be secular, and was born of people who came to create their own sanctuary. The citizens of the United States who have graciously inherited it from their forefathers forget that the reason many of the colonies were founded was because of religious persecution in Europe. The colonists (though there was some high tension between those of differing religious views in the very beginning) came to understand that they all commonly lacked religious freedom. That is why our first amendment grants us that right. And because all of this, the national government must recognize marriage civilly in order to grant marriage benefits to everyone whether they had a traditional Japanese wedding or a Bedouin wedding.

Now, I must state that I am not particularly religious in any way. I associate myself with Christianity because my family has done so for years. But I honestly don’t go to church on Sundays nor do I pray before dinner. And if I’m being true to myself, I would almost say that I am atheist. So why do I make the argument for gay marriage in terms of religion? Because if it weren’t for the religious people arguing that gay marriage is an attack on their religious beliefs, the United States would have recognized it long ago! Don’t get me wrong, though. I’m not saying that believing in same-sex marriage should be considered a religion. I’m merely asking for the same respect we give those of different religious affiliation to be applied to marriage so that maybe—one day—those of us who aren’t allowed to realize our dream of being a happily married couple just might be able to. If that means adding an amendment for the Freedom of Marriage, I’m all for it!