Basic Rights

Generally, I prefer to think of basic human and civil rights as political non-starters. We hold these truths to be self-evident, basic unalienable rights, governments instituted among men, etc. You know how it goes. The United States of America has been, still is, and should continue to be the world's moral beacon. When it comes to human rights there should not be a conversation because in this country we believe that all people are created equal. Right?

Not necessarily. Chris Christie, one of the few Republicans for whom I have a bit of grudging respect went a long way towards undermining that respect Friday when he vetoed a bill that would have legalized gay marriage in New Jersey. Christie, whose rhetoric makes it seem like he actually wanted to sign the bill but caved to political pressure, is just the latest example of someone who is willing to play politics with the lives and emotions of human beings.

That gay marriage is some sort of contentious topic is a national embarrassment to begin with; imagine someone posed the question "should we legally discriminate against people based on the color of their skin?" Would you even consider the question? Should we legally discriminate against people based on their gender? Their religion? Should we legally discriminate against certain people for ANY reason? I can't think of one. Perhaps we should legally discriminate against bigots.

Sadly however, in most of America, we do legally discriminate against gay people. There are only seven states in which gay marriage is legal. Even if Christie hadn't cowardly and deplorably vetoed the bill legalizing gay marriage in New Jersey, that state still would have only been the eighth in which gay marriage would have been legal. Seven of 50 states. That's 14%. In 14% of America are gay people allowed the same rights as straight people. That is a national embarrassment.

This isn't a conversation we should be having. Unemployment is still through the roof; we need to speed up the economic recovery, reduce the deficit, reinvest in infrastructure and education, becoming energy independent, and address an array of national security threats, but instead we are wasting our time arguing about whether or not gay Americans should have the same basic rights as the rest of us.

I understand that much of the uproar against gay marriage comes from conservative religious communities. I believe that those who oppose gay marriage on religious grounds have sincere and closely held beliefs. I believe that they are entitled to those beliefs, and I believe that they should be allowed to express those beliefs. Never, ever, not in a million years should we let those beliefs, no matter how sincere they are, effect policy that creates a subgroup of citizens. If a devout religious person wants to buy a van and take it on a nationwide "God Hates Gays" tour, so be it. In America, we protect the right to free speech just as we should be protecting the right of all people to get married. We should not allow those religious beliefs to effect policy that strips people of rights based on their sexuality.

During the height of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s Americans debated whether or not we should discriminate against certain Americans because of the color of their skin. When I reflect upon that time in my nation's history I find myself in awe of the heroes who risked their lives for equality, but I also view the whole episode as an ugly blight in American history. People actually had to die in order for this country to treat African Americans as equal citizens? We actually had this debate? There was a time, not even that long ago, in which we legally discriminated against people because of the color of their skin? This is abhorrent. My parents, who lived through the 1960s struggled to explain to me when I was a child why it was that America once allowed racial segregation. One day I am going to have to explain to my children why it was that America once denied people equal rights based on their sexuality. I'm sure when that day comes, my children will be just as confused about it as I was as a kid trying to understand why we ever treated African-Americans as second class citizens.

Gay marriage is a non-starter. There is no other side to the issue. All Americans deserve the same basic rights. There's nothing more to be said.