Gay Marriage Legalized By: Hager Hanon, Christina Tappy, Christty Fabre, Anthony Dass, Crystal Sing Government Pd.6 Mrs. Schiller

Do Now: What do you think is the affect of gay marriage on society?

History…..  Homosexuality (sexual interaction between people of the same gender) has been part of many cultures throughout history. Even during Ancient times.  However, over the course of years we encountered an increase in the number of people in the gay community. Which led to the need of laws to protect their liberation and rights.  Therefore in 2001 many countries throughout the world started legalizing same-sex marriage. Argentina, Canada, Iceland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden, Portugal, Mexico City, Spain, and South Africa were among those countries.

 Almost 50% of the United States population oppose ssame-sex marriage.  People argue and debate whether gay marriage may cause a bad influence and disturbance in the future generation.  The increased visibility of the gay community provoked a well publicized criticism by those who oppose gay rights.  People believe in following their old tradition, marriage is a union between a man and woman. They also believe that that gay marriage should be banned, despite the fact that it’s now accepted in several states.  Gay marriage began to be a political issue in the 1990’s when some states began to ask if their constitutions allowed two people of the same sex to be married.

Gay Rights Movement  The Gay Rights Movement can be traced back to stonewall riots on June 28, 1969  Between the number of gay organization increased from 60 to 1,000  Gay rights activism in 1970s focused on personal freedom and visibility than on gaining access to institutions such as marriage. However, as the gay community’s population increases, their rights increased. They’re now asking for their right to get married.  In December 1973 The American Psychiatric Association declassified homosexuality as a mental disorder and the American Psychological Association did so in 1975.

Stonewall Riots  On June 27 th, 1969, in Greenwich Village New York, a gay bar called Stonewall was raided by the police.  This was nothing new since private businesses and gay establishments were regularly raided and shut down.  The police came in the bar and asked for costumers’ I.D. They then started escorting costumers out of the bar and throwing them off the sidewalk.  However, some started to fight back. They started throwing objects at the police. Police reinforcements arrived and beat the crowd away.  The next night more than 1,000 gay people returned, and they started a riot shouting “Gay Power”. The riot did not break off until the arrival of the a riot control squad.  During the riot, many were hospitalized and a teenager lost two fingers for having his hand slammed in a car’s door.  This marked the birth of the Gay Right’s Movement and the LGBT community.

Legalized Gay Marriage TThe United States constitution does not require the U.S. governments or state governments to legalize gay marriages or enforce laws that puts limits on gay rights/marriage. NNine states have legalized gay marriage ME, MD, MA, MA, CI, IA, VI, NH, WA, and NY 331 states have constitutional amendments banning gay marriage 66 states have laws banning gay marriage

Court Cases  Loving v. Virginia (1967) stated that same- sex marriage is equal to normal marriages and has the same rights.  Baker v. Vermont (1999) stated that gay marriage has the same rights, protections, and benefits as heterosexual couples.  Baehr v. Lewin (1993) the supreme court ruled that Hawaii cannot ban gay marriage without a compelling reason. But a lower case voted on banning gay marriage before the supreme court settled the issue.

Proponents argue that…..

pros  There is no such thing as a traditional marriage  Gay marriage is protected under the Constitution for Liberty and Equality  Gay marriage can bring financial gain to state and local governments (taxes).  Proponents argue that the same-sex couples should have access to the same marriage benefits.  Banning gay marriage was unconstitutional under both the Due Process and Equal protection clauses  1974 Cleveland Board of Education VS. La Fleur- declared that “freedom of personal choice in the matters of marriage and family life is one of the liberties protected by the Due Process and Equal Protection clauses

Opponents argue that….

 Gay marriage will lead to polygamous (having more than 1 mate at time).  Gay marriage is contrary with the beliefs of monotheistic religions.  Gay married couples will be entitled to typical marriage benefits such as claiming tax exemptions and coverage of health insurance.  Gay marriage will lead to more children being raised in same-sex household, which is considered not the most favorable environment to raise children, because children need both a father and a mother.  Allowing gay marriage will shift the purpose of marriage from producing and raising children to adult gratification (pleasure). Cons

Statistics of the LGBT Community.

Discussion questions  How do you feel about same sex marriages?  Do you support same sex marriages and gay rights? Why or why not?  If it was up to you would you vote to let same sex marriages be legalizes? Why or why not?  How would you react if you were gay and your parents didn’t support you?  What would you do if one of your close friends turns out to be gay?

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