Liberty and Justice for All*

Welcome to America, where you will have liberty and justice for all*

(* unless you're homosexual)

Okay, so I am a bit upset about the rash of same sex marriage defeats over the past several years, including the horrid Federal Defense of Marriage Act . . .

I think what pisses me off the most is that my civil rights are being put to a vote -- and yes, I said civil rights. For those in the mood to argue about what civil rights are, let me put that arguement to rest right now -- civil rights as defined by dictionary.com is "rights to personal liberty established by the 13th and 14th amendments to the US Constitution and certain Congressional acts, esp. as applied to an individual or minority group."

The whole reason we have civil rights is that the majority in any nation (not just ours) have the tendency to want to marginalize the minority. That minority over the years has been defined by many different aspects -- be it race, country of origin, religious faith, gender, and sexuality. In order to ensure equal rights among all, our nation, while begrudgenly, has enacted statutes and laws to ensure that the minority, however it is defined, has the same chance at happiness and fullfillment as all others . . . until now. Now, for some unknown reason, we have decided the way to decide civil rights issues is to put it to a vote . . .

So - to all those that see nothing wrong with allowing civil rights issues to be put to a vote, I offer this question and list of answers . . . How would our nation be different if we allowed civil rights issues to be put to a popular vote?

• Seperate but Equal statutes would be in effect -- there'd still be whites only and colored only places in America, and as evidenced by the pictures of that time, the whites would have an advantage b/c typically those facilities were much better


• Education would only go to white men -- before Title 9 and other Equal Opportunity statutes were passed -- most minority classes (i.e. Blacks, Hispanics, Women) were not afforded the same chances at scholarships, team participation in sports, or even admittance to the top universities and colleges in the nation.


• Right to Vote would only reside with White Men -- Blacks didn't gain the right to vote until after slavery was abolished (by statute, not a vote) and women didn't gain sufferage until the 1920 . . .


• Blacks would not be allowed into the military, nor women


• In all likelihood, several states would probably still have laws allowing for legal slavery and women would be treated as property


• Polygamy would still be legal in Utah

Just think of the depravity of our society if we would have allowed voters to decide the rights of the minorities. We would have missed out on leaders that have directed our nation and industries. You don't even have to look very far to find leaders of minorities that have had an impact on us, Dorthea Dix, Susan B. Anthony, George Washington Carver, the Tuskeegee Airmen, Gen. Colin Powell, Condeleeza Rice, Janet Reno, President Barack Obama, Sec. of State Hillary Clinton to name the most recent . . . Whether you agree or support them in their endeavors, you can't deny the influence they've had on our country. None of them would have had the chance if we voted on it.

I'm not for the abolition of voting rights, or that I know all, but rather to understand our history and how we, as all other societies, have had the tendency to oppress others in the minority. Why, at this time of our existence, with the history our nation already has built, would we suddenly choose to trust the masses in regards to a question about oppression? Where are the leaders in our country to stand up and fight with us? Every member of the NAACP, NOW, LULAC, the Islamic and Jewish communities (among others), should be standing beside us - acknowledging that our rights have been denied.

The problem I guess, is that now that they are part of the accepted majority, there's just not many left to stand with us . . . sad that they have forgotten what it's like to be denied the opportunity just because of who you are.

So -- I have one thing to say in closing -- I'm here, I'm queer, get over your fear. Because it is -- at it's core -- an irrational fear that is preventing the legalization of same sex marriage.

(Notice I didn't even point out the weakness in the "sanctity of marriage" arguement by discussing common law marriage and how hypocritical that arguement really is . . . oh wait, just did)