Legalizing Same Sex Marriage

    People all over the world see America as a place of freedoms. They see us as a symbol for people to be allowed the lives of their dreams. America is a place of dreams, a place of hope, but most of all it is a place of equality for everyone, including people who want to get married. But they can't because laws prevent them from it.  When you ask someone of the streets if they believe in equality for all they will certainly say they do. But if you ask them if they believe in same-sex marriage, they might answer differently. A person who considers themself a true patriot might actually be discriminating more than they ever dreamed. We should add an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that declares same-sex marriage legal nationwide because there is significant discrimination against the homosexual community, America's promise of equality is absolute, and it would affect people only for the better.

    Not allowing homosexual people to get married is a thoughtless discrimination like with other periods in history. If we put that ripple in time and think back to the many seemingly pointless hours we spend in history class, then we know that inequity has been a problem in the world for a long time. Discrimination against African Americans occurred for hundreds of years and people gave no thought about it. It was just a normal part of life. However, it shouldn't be that way with same-sex marriage. The point of history is to learn about the past so we don't repeat it. It took almost 200 years for women's rights proposal to be approved in the 19th Amendment. Men were prejudiced against them for far too long and still remain so somewhat today! Will the world never change? So much bias against couples of the same sex is in today's society and no one thinks of it as wrong! Is this issue any less important than past problems? Is this discrimination any less serious? The intolerance is unacceptable. America needs to learn from its mistakes and stop discriminating between straight and gay.
   
    America's promise of equality is absolute and that goes for gay marriage just as much as it does anything else. American laws actually prove that same-sex marriage should be legal. The first amendment of the constitution states that all beliefs need to be protected whether they are religious or the lack thereof.  Homosexuality is not considered right in some cultures but the constitution still vows to support any belief. Because they are gay, does that make it okay to not grant them the freedoms that America promises? Our declaration of independence states that all people have the right to the pursuit of happiness, and apparently, homosexuals aren't included in this nation encompassing statement. They can no longer be swept under the rug like dead bugs and dust bunnies! If all people have the right to pursue happiness then gays and lesbians should be given the opportunity to spend the rest of their lives in matrimony with the one they love the most in a state of not just happiness but of ecstasy that straight people receive when they get married.

    Who would this affect besides those particular people? Same-sex marriage hurts no one; it affects only the minimum that it applies to and it gives that minimum respect in society as a couple. Homosexuals make up only about four percent of the US population, which isn't a lot and certainly doesn't have to disturb anybody in any way; all marriage does is make them happier and more satisfied in their lives. Frequently overlooked by many people is the concept of adoption in same-sex families. Many babies are abandoned and left at orphanages; going through foster home after foster home and never finding the life they need in order to grow up as fine individuals. If two people get married, usually they want to have children. Gays and lesbians can't have children for obvious reasons so they have to adopt. This is very important to them because they are still a couple and still want to have children but marriage first is the key. If this amendment is passed and they can get married, the adoption rate will go up and all of those little children can walk home hand in hand with parents who want the child just as much as the child wants them. It is the most obvious win-win situation but still, no one can conceive of it? What is wrong with happiness? Do tell!

    Marriage is a declaration to a lover that is certainly not made up or an illusion. Believe it or not, gay people have feelings too and so many of them just want to spend their lives with the ones they love. America lives in harmony with people easily and that is, or supposedly is, what our society is based on. Why then, are we uncomfortable when talking about topics such as this one? Why are we still so selfish in our own beliefs that we can't grant people happiness? Why can't we live and let live?  This isn't about us, it's about them and it is completely unjust, unconstitutional, and un-American to deny homosexuals the bliss and adventure of marriage.