The Gay Marriage Problem

Investigative Research Essay

Kilian Soper

Mrs. Messer

English 12

March 10, 2018

On June 26th, 2015, gay marriage was legalized in all remaining states in the United

States making many rejoice in happiness and making others cry out in anger (Vogue, Diamond).
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Now, that may seem to put a full halt to homosexual peoples’ troubles in America, but many

would argue that the discrimination just became heavier and that the people opposing it just

became more violent. Others would say that nobody discriminates against the LGBT, or lesbian,

gay, bisexual, and transgender, community. Most people who are opinionated in this matter have

ideas and beliefs backing up exactly why they feel this way, so in order to decide which side is

right and wrong, both sides must be explored. Like all social issues, there are always two or more

sides with a plethora of different views combatting for what they believe is to be social justice.

Throughout world history, gay marriage has slowly gotten more popular and accepted along with

Homosexuality as a whole. In many ways, it has expressed growth in the number of people that

actively partake in the LGBT community, and also the people that do not think it is right and try

to prevent it.

The earliest known cases of homosexuality were documented in East-Asia approximately

600 B.C. and was mostly showcased in paintings instead of actual literature (Baker, John).

Homosexuality was documented more in paintings and pictures for a long time. 600 B.C. was the

earliest case, but the first time it was referred to as the LGBT community was in the late 1980’s

when they trademarked the rainbow “Pride Flag”. (See exhibit A (Baker, Gilbert)) Although

there was a minute amount of documentation back many years ago, it was typically seen as a sin

in the eyes of higher power. Not until the mid 1950’s did an actual civil rights movement in

favor of homosexuality took action against the majority. This movement was started by Chuck

Rowland who, later, coined the term “LGBT”. He is seen as a hero in the eyes of many, ranking

up among the most impactful civil rights leaders, but in the eyes of others, he is viewed as a

leader in the downfall of faith and the World. With homosexuality becoming more popular,

groups like this were speaking out against people opposite them and thought that in order to
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become fully happy, they should get rights. Since there are two sides to every argument, some

people fight for what they believe to be right and others just like to protest. Many also do not

express their opinions and believe that silence is the way to combat the naysayers. Although no

revolution in favor of gay rights was documented until the mid 1950’s, there were most likely a

lot of smaller revolutions that took place that were just too outnumbered to be noticed by the

public, given that homosexuality has been present for so long in history (Baker, John).

. Exhibit A

The gay community has grown to the point that 23% of Americans consider themselves

homosexual or bisexual, being attracted to both men and women (Head.) In fact, for generations,

popular musical artists have incorporated subliminal messaging into their music supporting gay

marriage like Elton John’s “Levon” (Elton John). In this song, the artist references

homosexuality, which he is part of the community of, but does not directly state anything about

it. Modern times, being more accepting, have allowed for more artists to express themselves

fully instead of using hidden messages. An example of this is Macklemore’s “Same Love” which

was a chart topper in 2013. “A bunch of stereotypes all in my head. I remember doing the math

like "Yeah, I'm good a little league.” A pre-conceived idea of what it all meant. For those who

like the same sex had the characteristics. The right-wing conservatives think it’s a decision.”

(Macklemore). In this song, the artists state the political issue exactly without beating around the

bush. Media is such a huge influence on the minds of people of all ages, and since “Same Love”

came out, it is entirely possible that it had a much larger impact on the legalization of gay

marriage than many people realize. There was also a sizeable pop culture phenomenon that
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involved the production of many forms of political cartoons and comics, so of course gay

marriage is one of the most popular topics of these often times relieving illustrations. (See

exhibit B (Handelsman))

Exhibit B

While the world seems to be converting to being generally positive about the movement,

a lot of people still are very unhappy about it. Most of the people or groups that are unhappy

about this movement consider themselves actively religious. “Throughout Scripture, it is clear

that marriage is a lifelong, exclusive covenantal union of two people—a husband and a wife—

which forms the foundation for the family. That is, marriage is oriented toward producing and

raising children, if God so blesses (Genesis 1:28; Malachi 2:15). God created us male and

female to complement one another.” (Halley.) This quote is from a website based solely on

creationism and the author is an active member of the Catholic church. In many cases, this non-

accepting mindset derives from religion and how homosexuality is seen in the eyes of God. The

people that do not consult their religions about their opposition to the movement usually have

their opinions because they believe it is unnatural. The most popular argument for people against

homosexuality is that human anatomy has clearly been designed for a man and a woman’s

companionship. When asked if she views homosexuality as unnatural, Brenda Frasier, a

homosexual elementary school teacher responded, “I don’t think it’s unnatural. I Have always

thought of it as more of a mental companionship than one defined by genitalia. I think it’s all

about person and person. Love, not sex.” (Soper.) For someone’s perspective who is in favor of
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gay rights and gay marriage, she said it is a mental companionship rather than physical. In other

words, yes, we came into being with two genders of separate genitalia but love is defined by

companionship. Groups like the “Southern Poverty Law Center” take action against the

community by preaching religious liberty and sometimes rioting, while the gay community takes

action with protesting and also sometimes rioting. In these protests and riots, some may say that

nothing good has become of them, but on the other hand, gay marriage was legalized in the

United States in 2015.

The main issue now is that one of the perspectives does not want gay marriage to be legal

and hates the thought of a man and a man getting married, and the other side wants people to

stop discriminating against them. Many gay people would say that people target them because of

their sexuality, which can be dramatically overstated, and the other side would most likely

defend themselves against this. Neither side thinks that all straight people are evil, but maybe a

little bit prejudiced sometimes. For both sides, there is not one singular person or leader who

controls all protests and public speaking. Instead, there are many from both views that are

activists in their respective beliefs. Both sides have no clear leader, but all operate as one unit in

different areas. Some pros for the pro-homosexuality view is that they are less opinionated

people unwilling to change their views would be able to get to higher positions. Gay people

would be seen as more equal and there would be less discrimination so more gay people could

show what they have to offer in the workplace. The cons to anti LGBT views are that less smart

people would be able to show their skills in the workplace and the world if people will

discriminate and not allow them to advance. There are very different pros and cons for both sides

which signifies how different both views are.

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People that do not understand either position taken in this issue have many questions.

Some of the presented question include “Is it actually unnatural for two people of the same

gender to be together? Are homosexuals born with their love or do they choose? Are there any

further steps that can be taken for gay rights?”. In order, the answers to this question were

provided to me by my interviewee. “I don’t think it’s unnatural. Have always thought of it as

more of a mental companionship than one defined by genitalia. I think it’s all about person and

person. Love, not sex. Some people choose and others are born with it. I could easily choose to

date a man right now. I chose to be this way, but I’ve had partners in the past that thought they

were born with it. Although it didn’t affect me necessarily, it was a huge leap. It didn’t only make

people wanting to get married happy, but it brought families together as well. It was a happy

moment for many people, gay or not. Families needed that step.” (Soper). This interviewee may

be an acception to the majority of the LGBT community in her views, but she is not alone.

Although they are all part of the same group, many have completely opposite opinions on the

matter.

There are many solutions to both sides, but like most social issues, they involve

eradicating the opposite perspective completely. For example, the LGBT community can get its

way by eventually having every state or province on Earth legalize gay marriage, but there would

still be disapproving groups. The best solution for all parties to be happy would be to have some

regions allow it and some other regions still keep it illegal. This would create a healthy balance

like how it is today. The main way to solve this issue is for homosexual people to act like

everyone else and prove to everyone what they have to offer. That way, everyone will see how

all humans are really the same, we all just have different ways of life.
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In the future, it is more than expected that the trend of acceptance will continue. That

number has been rising since the beginning of homosexuality, so most likely, the future will

bring the world to a more accepting place. On the other hand, the anti-LGBT activists could also

come up with a groundbreaking study or idea that could convert others as well. The future could

also be a balance just like it is now with many people disgusted with the thought of homsexuality

while others are actually involved in it. Workplaces may hire anyone with the correct skills

regardless of sexuality and no discrimination in the workplace could be tolerated, although

numbers are shrinking every day. Although the biggest step, legalizing gay marriage, has already

been taken, there are still steps to be taken. Global acceptance of gay marriage is the next step.

Homosexuality is most common in the U.S., and we have legalized that. The other steps to make

everyone happy are something that can not be determined by law, but rather a mutual bonding

together of people. Unity is the final step, but that is the final solution to all social problems.
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Works Cited

Baker, Gilbert. LGBT Pride Flag. San Francisco, 10 June 1978.

Baker, John. “Gay Marriage Timeline .” Should Gay Marriage Be Legal?, 6 Oct. 2014,
gaymarriage.procon.org/view.timeline.php?timelineID=000030.

Elton John. Levon, The Rocket Record Company, UK, 27 Feb. 1971.

Halley, Keaton. “How Gay Marriage Harms People.” Creation Ministries International , 24 June 2017,
creation.com/gay-marriage-harm.

Head, Tom. “4 Reasons to Support Same-Sex Marriage.” ThoughtCo, Thought Co., 1 June 2006,
www.thoughtco.com/reasons-to-support-gay-marriage-721253.

Handelsman, Walt. F@#% Climate Change. New Orleans, 6 June 2013.

Macklemore and Ryan Lewis. Same Love, Virgin Records, CA, 9 Oct. 2012.

Soper, Kilian W. “Gay Marriage in the Workplace.” 25 Feb. 2018.

Vogue, Ariane de, and Jeremy Diamond. “Supreme Court Rules States Must Allow Same-Sex
Marriage - CNNPolitics.” CNN, Cable News Network, 27 June 2015,
www.cnn.com/2015/06/26/politics/supreme-court-same-sex-marriage-ruling/index.html.