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Michael Smira

J. Ranck

WR 122

October 15th, 2010

Clouded Views of Family, and Religion, Threatens to Keep America in the Dark Ages

Homosexual Americans have been battling not only for equal human rights, but

also for the right to marry or to have a more formalized relationship, for nearly half a

century. However, the issue of same-sex unions has been at the forefront of political

debate for the last 20 years. This issue has rocked such same-sex relationship opponents

as religious right-wing conservatives, who have claimed not only that same-sex marriage

has no place in our society, but that it would erode “traditional family values,” would

threaten their own religious beliefs, and furthermore claim it would normalize a “sick,

deviant behavior” in society. This blatant attack on gay citizens’ rights to raise their

families, and have an official union with the same benefits that heterosexual marriages

have, has galvanized new realms of activists seeking equality.

David Masci, Senior Research Fellow for Pew Research Center's Forum on

Religion & Public Life, wrote of the match that ignited this controversial debate in 1993,

in his article on the Hawaiian Supreme Court’s ruling “that an existing law banning same-

sex marriage would be unconstitutional unless the state government could show that it

had a compelling reason for discriminating against gay and lesbian couples” (Masci). A

subsequent national backlash was sparked and the case was sent back for further
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consideration.

Following the Court’s ruling, homosexual couples across the country, equally

dedicated to their relationships as every other walk of American life, attempted to educate

the American people on an emerging, yet basic, human right. As such, other states began

amending their constitutions to prohibit same-sex marriages, essentially taking the

decision making away from the judges. Over 40 states participated in the passage of the

Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) on September 21, 1996, which defines marriage solely

as a union between a man and a woman. Of the 40 states that participated in DOMA, 36

states adopted the law. Four states, eschewing some of the more extreme rights violations

in DOMA, opted out. Masci further describes that, in 1996, the U.S. Congress passed –

and signed into law by President Bill Clinton, a federal DOMA statute which “asserts that

no state can be forced to legally recognize a same-sex marriage performed in another

state.” This new federal law is written in over a thousand laws and policies, which also

includes Social Security, family medical and federal taxation and immigration polices (“A

Contentious Debate“).

Although same-sex marriage has sparked such a volatile debate in the United

States, most Americans have accepted gay and lesbian communities and their

relationships. However, religious conservatives and activists have taken on the battle to

block the right for any ability of gay couples to formalize their relationships. Opponents

include Rick Santorum, a former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania, who claims that same-

sex marriage would erode religious freedom and further undermine a child’s right to be

raised by his or her biological mother and father (“A Contentious Debate“).

This claim may have some validity in certain circumstances. However, in today’s
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society, children are already robbed of the alleged right to be raised by both parents. A

recent survey done by the U.S. Census Bureau in November 2009 found that there are

approximately 13.7 million single parents in the United States today, and those parents

are responsible for raising 21.8 million children. Approximately 26% of children under

21 in the U.S. today are in single-parent families, according to Pew. Furthermore,

children are equally nurtured in single-parent homes, and with both parents – gay or

straight (“A Contentious Debate“). The social demographic clearly show that the

“Traditional American family” is all but gone.

More studies and surveys further prove that children living in same-sex household

are present in today’s society and live quite normal lives. In fact, nationally, 33 percent of

female same-sex couples and 22 percent of male same-sex couples live with children

under 18 years old (Acceptance). In the 2000 census, there were 594,000 households that

claimed to be headed by same-sex couples, with 27 percent of those having children

(Acceptance). In July 2004, the American Psychological Association (APA) concluded

that an "[o]verall result of research suggests that the development, adjustment, and well-

being of children with lesbian and gay parents do not differ markedly from that of

children with heterosexual parents.” In addition, research has consistently shown that

lesbian and gay parents do not differ from heterosexuals in their parenting skills,

dedication, and love. Further findings by the APA cited that children are equally cared for

and happy with homosexual parents as they are with their heterosexual parents (APA).

Countries like Canada who have legalized same-sex marriage have found

continued familial benefits from a legalized marriage. The Canadian Psychological

Association (CPA) has stated in 2006 that parents’ financial, psychological and physical
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well-being is enhanced by marriage and that children benefit from being raised by two

parents within a legally-recognized union. The CPA asserts that children stand to benefit

from the well-being that is a result when their parents’ relationship is recognized and

supported by society’s institutions (“Marriage“). This indicates that the entire family

structure itself is improved.

Research has proved that a child’s up-bringing in a same-sex home does not differ

from that of a heterosexual home. Furthermore, Professor Gregory M. Herek of the

University of California’s Department of Psychology, found that data “indicated that

same-sex and heterosexual relationships do not differ in their essential psychosocial

dimensions; that a parent's sexual orientation is unrelated to her or his ability to provide a

healthy and nurturing family environment; and that marriage bestows substantial

psychological, social, and health benefits” (Herek). Research also indicates that same-sex

couples and their children are more likely to benefit in many ways from legal recognition

of their families and, if society were to provide such recognition through marriages, it

would bring greater benefits than civil unions or domestic partnerships (Herek).

The American religious community is deeply divided over the issue of same-sex

marriage. The Vatican and many evangelical Christian groups have played a leading role

in public opposition towards gay marriage with its unsubstantiated claims that same-sex

marriage normalizes homosexual behavior, encouraging same-sex attraction as opposed

to resisting it. Such theological claims are not based upon any human research, studies, or

logic.

Before the 1980s, the few representations of homosexuality in popular culture

tended to consist of potentially dangerous social deviants like Norman Bates in Psycho.
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Since then, however, the portrayal of gay characters in popular culture have become far

more numerous and mostly positive. That growing representation may have spurred

growing acceptance --and inflated population estimates. A U.S. Gallup found that 52

percent of Americans say they believe homosexuality should be considered an acceptable

alternative lifestyle, up from just 34 percent in 1982. The polls also showed that a

stronger majority – 62 percent – of young adults aged 18 to 29 consider homosexuality

acceptable (“Acceptance“). This plainly demonstrates the growing shift in thinking

during this time period, and suggests that the opinions of among young Americans have

changed to become more tolerant.

Tolerance varies between the older and the younger generations. Evidence shows

that age is a significant factor regarding approval of same-sex marriages. This

generational gap appears when results are broken down by age category: among 18-29

year-olds, 59 percent would favor the law, compared with the 42 percent of those aged 30

to 49 and 35 percent of those 50 and older (“Acceptance“). There seems to be a certain

level of acceptance in society today.

The public's gradually shifting stance on accepting homosexuality is evident in

other measures. More than half of Americans now say they think homosexual relations

between consenting adults should be considered legal (“Acceptance“).

Many U.S. Courts have taken swift action to acknowledge the need for such

policy changes as homosexuals in the military and adoption rights. Sandhya

Somashekhar, a writer for The Washington Post, quotes Kevin Catchcart, executive

director of Lambda Legal, an advocacy group, in her article “Barriers Remain Despite

Recent Gay Rights Milestones, Advocates Say” “that equal rights for homosexuals is at a
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very odd moment, because there's all of these horrific things happening, and they are

happening at a moment when we're making faster progress than, I think, ever before,"

(Somashekhar). Somashekhar also outlines historic victories in recent years including

federal courts in California and Massachusetts which declared that the federal

government’s bans on same-sex marriages are unconstitutional. She further reveals that

Florida officials announced that they would comply with a court ruling that the state must

drop its 33-year ban on adoptions by gays. Additionally, as recently as October 2010, a

federal judge ordered the military to end its "don't ask, don't tell" policy, which forbade

gay and lesbian members of the military from serving openly. This decision was sparked

weeks before, after a different federal judge in Washington State ordered the

reinstatement of a decorated Air Force officer who had been dismissed for revealing she

is a lesbian. She spoke with Ethan Geto, a longtime gay activist and lobbyist, who told

her that 75 percent of Americans, think gays and lesbians should be allowed to serve

openly in the military. “We have made fantastic progress,” said Geto. “We are going at

warp speed. This is the fastest civil rights movement in history.” It took women a years to

achieve the right to vote and the racial equality movement on slavery went on until the

civil war when slavery was finally abolished.

Viewing both sides and taking a hard look at the evidence presented, it is today’s

generation of Americans who have grow more tolerance and acceptance of such

alternative lifestyles as homosexuality, who have further continued the “normalization of

homosexual behavior.” The statistical data has shown that younger generations have

proven to be more accepting of homosexuality then older generations.

After all, the equal rights movement began in the 1960’s, it was primarily the
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younger generation who took great risk to help make that a reality, which was

demonstrated in the Kent state riots when students opposed to the Vietnam war and

frustrated with equal rights began to protest, later on the National Guard opened fire on

the crowd killing four students (May 4). I can see a strong, gradual shift for equality as

being purely generational. I believe we must also consider these new acceptance of ideals

as a product of our evolutionary ability to think, wonder, and explore, as Charles Darwin

did so many years ago. As we continue to accept other cultures, races, ethnicities and

orientations, imagine the possibilities the next generation can achieve in terms of

tolerance and acceptance. Equality is a basic necessity that many Americans have

struggled for in the past and this is just another targeted group who must fight for their

rights as American citizens to marry. Americans have, throughout history, shown a

resilience to discrimination, a principal upon which our nation itself was founded.
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Works Cited

"Acceptance of Homosexuality: A Youth Movement." Gallup.Com - Daily News, Polls,

Public Opinion on Government, Politics, Economics, Management. 19 Feb. 2002.

Web. 18 Oct. 2010. <http://www.gallup.com/poll/5341/acceptance-

homosexuality-youth-movement.aspx>.

"APA Brief Cited in California Same-sex Marriage Ruling." American Psychological

Association (APA). 16 May 2008. Web. 18 Oct. 2010.

<http://www.apa.org/topics/law/marriage-calif.aspx>.

"A Contentious Debate: Same-Sex Marriage in the U.S." Http://pewforum.org/. 09 July

2009. Web. 18 Oct. 2010. <http://pewforum.org/Gay-Marriage-and-

Homosexuality/A-Contentious-Debate-Same-Sex-Marriage-in-the-US.aspx>.

Herek, Gregory M. "Legal Recognition of Same-sex Relationships in the United States: A

Social Science Perspective." Http://psycnet.apa.org/index.cfm?

fa=buy.optionToBuy&id=2006-11202-004. 15 Sept. 2006. Web. 16 Oct. 2010.

"Marriage Same-Sex Couples Position Statement."

Www.cpa.ca/.../Marriage_SameSex_Couples_PositionStatement.pdf. 16 Apr.

2006. Web. 17 Oct. 2010.

May 4 Task Force Kent State University Students. "KENT STATE 1970: Description of

Events May 1 through May 4." Http://www.may4.org. 28 Mar. 2010. Web. 18 Oct.

2010. <http://www.may4.org/information/kent-state-1970-description-of-events-

may-1-through-may-4.html>.

Somashekhar, By Sandhya. "Barriers Remain despite Recent Gay Rights Milestones,

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Advocates Say." Washington Post - Politics, National, World & D.C. Area News

and Headlines - Washingtonpost.com. 14 Oct. 2010. Web. 18 Oct. 2010.

<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-

dyn/content/article/2010/10/14/AR2010101403564.html?hpid=topnews>.