Today is a great victory for gay marriage. The Massachusetts state legislature defeated a bill that would have sent an amendment to define marriage as between a man and a woman to referendum. Since the Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled that gays and lesbians are entitled to marriage under the state's constitution, forces have been mobilized to take that right away by amending their constitution. The process to amend the state constitution takes several years. By defeating the amendment in the legislature, the process to amend the constitution will have to start all over.
It's already been three years since gay marriage was legal in Massachusetts. At this point, everyone has issue fatigue. Gays got married and life as we know it hasn't altered dramatically. The country is finally focusing (at least more so) on issues of real importance, like the disaster in Iraq. Most of the country is looking forward to deciding the next president. Most of us are not looking to turn back time and take away the right to marry from gays and lesbians.
This change will take time, but it's happening. We're witnessing a slow revolution and full equality and citizenship for gays and lesbians is not far off. That sounds pretty lofty, but I can't help but feel hopeful that after all these years living under an oppressive administration, we're finally gaining ground. This is despite having the Republicans in control for so long. If Bush couldn't stop our progress, the next president won't be able to. And I doubt the next president will put so much emphasis on these social issues since it hasn't done much to help the American people.
Maybe I'm just dreaming, but it feels good.
Peace, man.
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1 comment:
Keep up the good work.
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