Same-Sex Couples in the United States Should not be Legally Permitted to Get Married - Report Example

Same Sex Couples in United s Should not be Legally Permitted to Get Married Arguably, same sex marriage refers to the relationship between two individuals belonging to different gender identity, that is, two females or two males. In most cases, the opponents of same sex marriage perceive it as a way of redefining marriage because normally marriage is meant to be between a man and a woman, but the supporters refer to this union as equal marriage. The common argument against same sex marriage is that the acknowledgement of homosexuality by the public interferes with the self-understanding of the heterosexual family in the society (Sullivan 147). In the contemporary society, same sex marriage is common and practiced in various parts of the world, for instance, many Americans today support homosexuality and many argue that society should equally accept and accommodate gay marriages just like heterosexual marriages. Gay couples are denied an important right in the society, the right to marry and be happy just likes the heterosexual couples (Williams 589). Various theories have been presented such as the Divine Command Theory, the utilitarian perspective and the Natural Law Theory in response to the legalization of same sex marriage in the United States. Adult adoption is a common strategy used by some same sex couples to establish a legal family relationship that offers some of the rights associated with marriage (Merin 196). This paper presents various arguments against same sex marriages in the society with the aid of different theories; and further elaborates on homosexuality in traditional China. The Divine Command Theory argues that goodness is rooted in God’s being and that all He commands is good. Therefore, gay marriage should be condemned because it is still a form of sexual immorality according to God’s laws because according to this theory, some actions are right because they are what God wills for us (MacKinnon and Fiala 26). Divine Command Theory states that what is good is what God says is good and this implies that individuals receiving commands would obey whatever they believe comes from the Holy Spirit. In addition, according to this theory, God’s laws are good because God is good and so individuals would live a life of lesser good if they deviate from God’s goodness; literally, this theory claims that what God command as correct is definitely right but what He does not is not morally acceptable like same-sex marriages. Moreover, marriage is a religious rite that binds a woman and a man together and from this perspective, God created the marriage institution and He meant that this institution particularly occurs between a man and a woman. Further, they claim that marriage was not established by the state but by God and many religious institutions strongly oppose gay marriages claiming that such institutions are not based on their religious beliefs and traditions. Moreover, same sex marriage validates and promotes the heterosexual lifestyle in that, allowing gay marriage will promote homosexual lifestyle and undermine the basic moral values, devalue traditional marriage and weaken public morality. The weakness in Divine Command Theory facilitated the adoption of Natural Law Theory as a theory of ethics by the Catholic Church. According to the natural law theory, there are certain laws of nature with particular values and purposes and so something or an action can be considered right or wrong if it is in line with its natural purpose as defined by nature. More so this law posits that without the newborn infant, marriage institution is unlikely to survive or prosper (Sullivan 162). According to the catholic natural law, gay marriage is morally wrong and unnatural because the normal or natural purpose of marriage is procreation but this is not guaranteed in gay sex or marriage. In addition, marriage is a privilege not a right as supporters of gay marriage claim because the society can choose to endorse some forms of sexual arrangements and give support in the form of benefits to these arrangements. However, marriage was established to allow society support heterosexuals in procreation and so the society can choose not to provide the same benefits to gay couples. Moreover, gay marriages should not be allowed because gay couples are incapable of reproducing and so allowing gay marriage in the society will automatically change the natural purpose of marriage from procreation to rearing children to adult gratification. Furthermore, gay marriage will only facilitate the assimilation of homosexuals into mainstream heterosexual culture to the detriment of the homosexual community. Ideally, the gay community has come up with their own vibrant culture and so allowing gay marriages will reduce the differences experienced between gay and heterosexual individuals. This is not right because marriage means adopting heterosexual forms of family and abandoning gay family forms as well as their culture. Some have proposed the disintegration of the church and the state so that the state does not interfere with the affairs of the church and this is what the First Amendment of America’s Constitution suggests. This amendment was not “to protect Americans from religion but to protect religion from government interference” (Patton). However, some argue that religion and law are not rivals in that the divine law forms a significant part of the two. The utilitarian conception of ethics ascertains that a particular action is morally right only if it brings more overall happiness in society than any other option. Therefore, even when a certain action may be unfair to a particular group of societal members, utilitarian would probably defend it if its ratio of benefit to harm were better than that of other option. According to utilitarian view, same sex marriage would negatively affect the society and that the ratio of undesirable to constructive concerns of homosexual marriage would be considerably greater as compared to the contemporary marriage laws (Schauder). Therefore, the utilitarian argument strongly opposes same sex marriage in the society. According to those opposing same sex marriage, changing the traditional meaning of marriage will weaken the marriage institution and so condemning gay marriage is the starting point of strengthening the marriage institution according to the traditional norms of marriage. Same sex marriage should not be legalized since traditionally, marriage is known as the union between a man and a woman and not the other way, that is, between two men or two women. More so, marriage was mainly created for procreation and child rearing within a family. Same sex marriage is not marriage because marriage has at all times been an agreement or contract involving a man and a woman meant for procreation and education of children and the unity and wellbeing of the spouses. Notably, same sex marriage has undermined the institution of marriage in the United States considering that the importance of traditional meaning and purpose of marriage institution is slowly dying in America. This is owing to the fact that many Americans practice or support same-sex marriage as opposed to heterosexual marriage. The opponents claim that increased divorce rates has weakened the marriage institution in many countries and they argue that redefining marriage to include same sex relationships would destroy marriage institution. In addition, same sex marriage should not be allowed because it could lead to a slippery slope enabling individuals in polygamous, incestuous, bestial and other non-traditional relationships also to have the right to marry. Actually, those advocating for polygamy as they claim that marriage between two adults of the same sex is not more or less correct than marriage between three or more adults have used gay marriage. Gay marriage will indefinitely lead to adoption and this will culminate to more kids being raised in same sex families, which is not the recommended environment for children because they require both mother and father for optimum development (Tyree). Gay marriage always denies a child either a father or a mother, but it is necessary for children to be raised by their own biological parents and experience the emotional support and care provided by their parents. Children raised by homosexuals are more likely to experience gender and sexual disorders, for instance, sons of lesbians tend to be less masculine whereas daughters of lesbians tend to be more masculine. In addition, girls that have been raised away from their fathers are at a higher risk of engaging in early sexual activities and so exposed to teenage pregnancy. Additionally, children that have grown up with same sex parents are more likely to engage in homosexual behavior as opposed to those raised by heterosexual parents. Furthermore, those raised by lesbian mothers are more likely to engage in a homoerotic relationship as compared to those that grow up in a normal family structure with a father and mother as role models. Notably, gay marriage advocates argue in the line of interracial marriage claiming that same sex marriages should be accepted just like interracial marriages (Babst, Emily and Pierceson10). Same sex marriage is not an issue of civil right and so comparing it with interracial marriage is very misleading. Specifically, the features of the protected civil rights include widespread discrimination and economic disadvantage among others, no sexual orientation mention in the civil rights categories. Sexual behavior and race are two different realities whereby, racial traits are inherited and can never be changed while homosexuality is something that is not inherited and can be therefore changed easily; therefore, there is no any noted relationship between the two and thus should not be compared. On the other hand, advocates for same sex marriage argue that gay couples should be allowed to enjoy some of the marriage benefits and public acknowledgement just like the heterosexuals and so they believe that condemning this kind of institution is form discrimination in the society. Advocates for same sex marriage argue that gays should be allowed to marry because homosexuality is natural. Religion does not affect individual’s sexuality and there are many religious homosexual people. It is morally wrong to use religion to prevent homosexuals from marrying because God never said that homosexuality is a sin. The Divine Command Theory has been criticized in that it assumes God’s laws to be arbitrary, explicitly; God commands a certain action because it is good. Gay people have the right to be happy with whoever they want to be happy and so they should be allowed to get married and live happily just like the others. They argue further that all humans have the same right and in today’s societies in a secular state where religion does not dictate or tell individuals what is right or wrong anymore (Spilsbury 27). According the State, a union between two individuals is a right that every citizen has and so gay couples should be allowed to marry and should equally have an access to the benefits associated to marriage just like those in heterosexual marriages such as taxation and inheritance rights and access to family health coverage among others. In the United States, the Supreme Court ruled that gay couples should have equal access to benefits of marriage (Badgett 156). In addition, they claim that the traditional marriage concept is considered as one man one woman, which is in history erroneous due to the practices witnessed in modern societies such as polygamy, communal child rearing, prostitution, and heterosexual monogamy among others. In addition, gay marriage is governed and upheld by the constitution’s commitments to liberty and equality; as a result, gay couples should be allowed to marry without any restriction or discrimination. Utilitarian argument has been accused of not considering other ethical values like justice and equality. In the Chinese society, lesbianism was seen as unnatural and very harmful to the health and wellbeing of a woman. However, great changes in ways of earning a livelihood and women not getting married at the right time forced many women to fall into lesbianism. In traditional China, same sex marriages especially for men were much less widespread because this one of the issues that were less talked or written about (Sullivan 26). A few were literate and also literary works were influenced by socio-political factors and so these works tend to ignore social norms and processes that affects the society such as same sex marriage. Therefore, there is very little information about male-male marriages. Fukien is known as “the center of homosexuality in China”; this is because such marriages were observed to be legitimately common with some even involving payment of bride price (Sullivan 27). Scholars noted that long-term sex loving relationships were common during some periods in the history of China (Newton 5). In conclusion, same sex marriage has become a common social issue in the contemporary society, and it is a form of marriage between two individuals of the same identity. Legalizing same sex marriage has created a heated debate among societal members, and gay couples should not be allowed to marry as this practice weakens the marriage institution. In addition, the different theories such as the divine command theory, natural law theory and utilitarian perspective as discussed above, gay marriages should not be legalized. However, advocates of same sex marriage have criticized these theories claiming that they are flawed and that they do not critically access what marriage institution entails. Works Cited Babst, Gordon, Emily, Gill and Pierceson, Jason. Moral Argument, Religion, and Same-Sex Marriage: Advancing the Public Good. Lanham, Md: Lexington Books, 2009. Print Badgett, Lee. When Gay People Get Married: What Happens When Societies Legalize Same-Sex Marriage. New York: New York University Press, 2009. Print. MacKinnon, Barbara, and Fiala Andrew. Ethics: Theory and Contemporary Issues. Belmont, Calif. : Cengage Learning, 2014.Print Merin, Yuval. Equality for Same-Sex Couples: The Legal Recognition of Gay Partnerships in Europe and the United States. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2002. Print Newton, David E. Same-sex Marriage: A Reference Handbook. Santa Barbara, Calif: ABC-CLIO, 2010.Print. Patton, Judd W. The Wall of Separation between Church and State. The Freeman. 2014. Web. May 29, 2014. < http://www.fee.org/the_freeman/detail/the-wall-of-separation-between-church-and-state > Schauder, Stephanie. Christian Ethical Arguments Regarding Same-Sex Marriage. Common Places Vol. 3 / Fall 2012 Web. May 29 , 2014. Spilsbury, Louise. Same-sex Marriage. New York: Rosen Central, 2012. Print. Sullivan, Andrew. Same-sex Marriage: Pro and Con : a Reader. New York: Vintage Books, 2004. Print. Tyree, Jenny. Mom and Dad: Kids Need Both. Citizen link. 2010. Web. May 29 , 2014. Williams, Reginald. Same-Sex Marriage and Equality. Ethic Theory Moral Practice 2011, 14:589–595. Read More