Marriage is a unification of two individuals loving one another each other and plans to live together for the rest of their lives. It has been a part of life for a long time, actually, since even before the medieval times. Normally, when two people of different sex plan to marry, the instinct is to legalize it. Now, when it comes to same-sex marriage, the issue has been widely discussed and debated across diverse platforms. The main concern is whether same-sex marriage should be legalized or not. Legalizing same-sex marriage involves putting into consideration concerns such as attitudes, ethics, customs, norms, and beliefs of the society (Daniels and Macdonald, 2005). In the U.S., discussions on whether same-sex couples should be granted a Constitutional right to wed has roiled political debates since 1993 ("Same-sex marriage," 2018) . The issue came to limelight again when the Supreme Court of the U. S ruled a five to four in favor of same-sex marriage. Its decision has stirred up a mixed reaction over the controversial issue as conservatives saying that it goes against the religious norms and beliefs while the supporters welcome the decision jubilantly. Therefore, this paper elucidates on how the decision changes the discussion of gender or sexual diversity in our country, its current and future impact on the marriage equality debate, events that led to the Supreme Court making the decision, and how the decision will be viewed in the future.
To start with, the Supreme Court’s decision to yield same-sex couples constitutional right to wed has totally changed the discussion concerning sexual diversity in the United States. For instance, the public opinion on same-sex marriage is rapidly shifting with more Americans supporting the equality right since the court made its decision. The number of supporters is constantly increasing whereas that of opposition is falling significantly. In addition, the states that barred same-sex couples from accessing benefits such as inheritance of property, insurance, and medical covers among others, are required by law to change their sexual diversity view and start treating same-sex couples equally.
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Despite the Supreme Court decision offering lucid guidance on the much-debated same-sex marriage issue, the discussion concerning marriage equality will last for quite a long period. This implies that the decision is not finality that the same-sex marriage issue has been fully resolved. Particularly, it is because the discussion now shifts to the modern rights versus cosmological rites. To be precise, the transsexual, gay, and lesbian people want the society and the law to recognize and fully accept same-sex relationships which are modern rights claim. And since the law has already granted the right to same-sex marriage, the debate is going to shift its focus on other aspects associated with marriage such as procreation (James, 2017). Additionally, another issue that is going to arise in marriage equality debate as to whether adopting children is a form of procreating. Furthermore, it heated debate will also entail the concern that kids brought up in a same-sex family tend to suffer from disorder (James, 2017). On the other hand, in terms of traditional cosmological rites, individuals with particular religious orientations will remain adamant to sanctify marriage as a union between a man and woman.
Prior to the decision by the Supreme Court, several occurrences led to the realization of the verdict. For instance, in 2003, Massachusetts court ruled that the state allowed gay marriage and issuance of marriage certificates to same-sex couples followed. Similarly, the same year several other states supported the decision by allowing same-sex marriage while other states passed gay marriage bans by either use of court or legislation (Liptak, 2015). Notably is the 2008 California state high-profile ban that occurred via a referendum since the state previously supported same-sex marriage. Additionally, in 2013, the case of United States v. Windsor that removed federal law refusing same-sex couples to get benefits like any heterosexual married also played a crucial part in the decision by the Supreme Court (Liptak, 2015). Moreover, the latest decision came exactly twelve years since laws that made gay sex a crime were removed by the majority opinion in Lawrence v. Texas (Liptak, 2015).
The ruling by the Supreme Court in Obergefell v. Hodges in 2015 citing that the Constitution allowed same-sex marriages would remain a historical moment even in the future. Reflecting on the decision, we would see how the decision by the Supreme Court laid the foundation for the fight against discrimination based on sexual orientation (Johnson, 2018). For instance, it is the decision by the Supreme Court that led to same-sex couples being able to enjoy benefits from such as Immigration rights, sharing of insurance coverage, social security survivor benefits, child custody, joint adoption, and foster care, and making medical decisions on behalf of spouse among others (Johnson, 2018).
Overall, the decision by Supreme Court to yield same-sex couples a constitutional right to wed has totally changed the discussion concerning sexual diversity in the United States through shifting more support for same-sex marriage and the homosexual couples accessing similar benefits as heterosexual couples. The marriage equality debate will last for a longer period since the decision is not decisive that the same-sex marriage issue is resolved. Rather, the debate now shifts to other aspects of the modern rights such as procreation versus cosmological rites where conservatives remain adamant to sanctify marriage. Additionally, the decision by Supreme Court came after several other attempts to legalize same-sex marriages such as the ruling of Massachusetts court in 2003v in favor of gay marriages, and the 2013 United States v. Windsor case among others. Lastly, it is evident that the decision remains a historical moment even in the future. Looking back at the historical moment we will see that the decision laid the foundation against discrimination based on sexual or gender orientation.
References
Daniels, K., & Macdonald, L. (2005). Equality, diversity, and discrimination: A student text . CIPD Publishing.
James, P. (2017). Hypocrisy reigns on both sides of the same-sex marriage debate. Retrieved from http://theconversation.com/hypocrisy-reigns-on-both-sides-of-the-same-sex-marriage-debate-82816
Johnson, R. (2018). What Government Benefits and Rights Do Married Gay Couples Have?. Retrieved from https://www.liveabout.com/the-benefits-of-gay-marriage-1411846
Liptak, A. (2015). Supreme Court Ruling Makes Same-Sex Marriage a Right Nationwide. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/27/us/supreme-court-same-sex-marriage.html
Same-sex marriage. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/topic/same-sex-marriage
