my mediocre 9th grade ssm research paper

Same-sex Marriage

Same-sex marriage is one of the most controversial subjects today in American and worldwide politics. Until the early 2000s, same-sex marriage was not legal anywhere worldwide. The majority of society has usually viewed marriage as only a union between a man and a woman. But, opinions revolutionize, and more than a handful of countries throughout Europe, North and South America, and even Africa ??? the least educated and developed region of the world have legalized same-sex marriage. Of course, same-sex marriage is still not legal in most countries throughout the world, and being homosexual is still illegal in countries throughout Africa and Asia. Punishments can be as severe as the death penalty to lengthy prison sentences. People should not be punished or be treated unfairly for just being who they are??? gays and lesbians should receive the same marital and legal benefits as heterosexual couples.

Gays and lesbians, who are just like everyone else besides their sexual orientation, still get treated like dirt and are denied basic rights from governments worldwide. Writer Andrew Sullivan, who is gay, describes finding out you are gay in today???s time as ???You will be treated differently by everyone, from your family to your friends and even stretching as far as to people that don???t even know you??? (Sullivan). ???I didn???t go to parties, learn how to drive, and lost friends??? (Sullivan) he later said. This subject sadly brings up the Civil Rights movement during the mid-20th century: a specific group of different people get treated like crap just because they are different by something as stupid as skin color. But look where the United States is now, with the Civil Rights bill passed decades ago, blacks are treated like ordinary people just like they should have been from the beginning and it should be the same way for gays and lesbians. But now the United States faces a new problem in a new generation: the fight for everyone to have the same marital rights and other basic rights that gays are flat out denied. People fight every day in the streets of different countries begging for their rights ??? something that they should be guaranteed anyways.

But every day, progress is being made in the United States and worldwide. Today, in the United States, eights states have legalized same-sex marriage ??? most in the Northeast region of country which is known for its liberal politics including - New York, Massachusetts, Vermont, and the country???s capital ??? Washington D.C., and other states on the West coast, also known for its liberal politics like Washington state. There has also been other breaks for same-sex equality, ???[t]he New Mexico Human Rights Commission fined a wedding photographer who refused on religious grounds to work a ceremony for two women and New York???s Supreme Court ordered Yeshiva University to let same-sex couples into its married-student housing??? (Olson). ???On the other hand, more than two dozen states have voter-approved amendments that bar same-sex marriage and voters in Minnesota and North Carolina will vote on the issue this year.??? (Tate) Same-sex marriage has dominated politics worldwide and is a heated subject today in the United States. Just in these past few months, California???s Proposition 8 was deemed unconstitutional, New Jersey???s governor, a Republican, vetoed a same-sex marriage bill, plus Washington state and Maryland legalized same-sex marriage. It is also making progress worldwide every year with more and more countries debating about it and legalizing it every year. Also, the United Kingdom and France are promising to have same-sex marriage legal in the next couple of years even though both countries have conservative governments in control ??? which goes to show that politics does not need to be included in this. Also, ???[t]o help pass the same-sex marriage bill in New York, four Republicans voted for the bill, and the Republican majority leader allowed the vote which the led for bipartisan support of passing the bill??? (Gallagher) further shows this.

But, instead of having politicians bicker over this social issue endlessly, we need to legalize it universally. We sit here every day wasting time watching states and countries fight over it ??? and it???s all just a waste of time. Trying to make sense of why people are against same-sex marriage is difficult, especially when oppositionists like Rod Dreher state ???[S]ame-sex marriage almost certainly would bring about serious restrictions on freedom of speech and association, particularly for churches and religious organizations??? (Dreher), and try to bring religion into the argument. Religion does not belong in politics. Politicians are here to serve the people, not themselves. They are here to vote for what is right for the country, not something that would keep us divided. Numerous polls have showed support for same-sex marriage in the U.S. and worldwide is growing, and just in these past two years, for the first time ever, there was more same-sex marriage supporters then there was people against it in the United States. And polls since then have kept following the trend showing us that people are becoming more educated on the issue. Other arguments, such as ???same-sex marriage is wrong???, or ???that it is not time for it??? are outdated. People against same-sex marriage are closed minded and greedy. Up to this day, there has not been one good argument against same-sex marriage and people against it can never provide one. There are plenty of valid arguments for same-sex marriage from people that are for it.

In today???s modern time, you would think that everyone by now would be treated fairly ??? especially in developed countries but we still sadly face this issue. Bottom line: stop wasting everyone???s time on this issue, legalize it, and actually work on the real issues that are important ??? like the economy.