The Bride and the Bride
Photo Credit: Creative Commons
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August 31, 2010 • Ellen Hughes, Scribbler staff
Filed under Opinions
For some, it starts with a romantic proposal and a ring, followed by months, maybe years, of planning. Finally, the big day arrives. Rows filled with chattering relatives and friends anxiously await the moment the bride glides down the aisle, sparkling in a crisp, white dress, locking eyes with her future husband and counting down the seconds until she says, “I do.”
But for others, it begins and ends a little differently.
Unfortunately, for the homosexual population of America, marriage hasn’t been this easy. Gay couples have been discriminated against for years, but they deserve the security, the benefits and the personal declaration of commitment that a legal marriage provides. Everyone should be given the option to marry, regardless of sexual orientation.
In Nov. 2008, Proposition 8 was passed in California, outlawing same-sex marriages anywhere in the state. After two years of hard fought battle between those for and against gay marriages, the ban is once again being seriously rethought, awaiting another ruling.
On Aug. 4, 2010, Federal District Chief Judge Vaughn R. Walker ruled that Prop. 8 was unconstitutional and, a week later, he ordered enforcement of the ban be abandoned on August 18th, legalizing same-sex marriages as of that date.
The case was then taken to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals which has extended a stay, meaning it will not make a decision one way or the other on same-sex marriages until December.
Before the appeals court determines whether or not Prop. 8 can become a law, it needs to establish whether or not the opponents of gay marriage have sufficient “standing,” or authority to prosecute in court. Without standing, the opponents of same-sex marriage cannot take the Prop. 8 case to court, and this whole mess could be forgotten. Then everyone could have the right to marry whomever they please.
Judge Walker declared Prop 8 unconstitutional because it deliberately denied a specific group of people a fundamental right. Marriage is a ceremony that legally unites two people. Morally and ethically, then, marriage should be an option for any two people, whether they are different races or the same race, different ages or the same age, or different genders or the same gender.
A wedding is a wedding. It starts with a ring, then a proposal. And a lot of time and money invested into making one day the best day of your life. It’s unfair to deny anyone the experience and value of that one day.
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