GayPatriotWest comments on the Kansas ammendment.
This article confirmed something that I have long believed -- that there are many people who oppose calling same-sex unions marriage, but who are clearly not anti-gay.
I have read the article mentioned and I do not see anything that changes my conclusion that the people who are voting for these amendments ARE prejudiced toward gay and lesbian people.
Mind you that I am not saying they are sheet-wearing bigots. ...
If you look at a "gay" marriage and compare it with a straight marriage, there is pretty much no difference in the way they function on a daily basis. The two couples get up, go to work, and try and raise a family, with or without children. And they try to stick together in a divorce-friendly world. They both also provide the same exact benefits to society. Maturity, stability and the raising of children among them. The two marriages truly ARE equal.
Therefore I can logically only see two reasons for opposing them. The first is because you believe the relationships are not sanctioned by God. The second is that the marriage is invalid on the basis of the characteristics of the individuals involved.
Those that agree with the first case should realize that this is then a matter of religious preference, not civil function.
For those that think the second case is true, then I do not see any other reason than that they are prejudiced toward gay and lesbian people on a very fundamental level.
They may have friends and family that are gay. But their respect and understanding for them only goes to a certain point and then stops. This is tolerance, not acceptance.
Tolerance means they look the other way so long as you do not do anything that they feel is threatening, such as expanding or challenging a tradition.
As gay people we should understand this. We go through it ourselves. We come from the same culture that straight people do and we carry all the same baggage.
Even years after coming out, we often still have the old prejudices. You see this when gay men criticize and put down other men that are effeminate or don't fit the current clone type that has been adopted. It's all from the same place. And it is all still prejudice.
But straight people don't even have the motivation we do to work through the prejudice and get rid of it.
In order to deal with the prejudice, you must agknowledge it, and confront it for what it is. That way it becomes not just a matter of a commitment to a vague ideal of equality, but it become a situation where you understand that you are doing something wrong. It becomes a matter of personal honor and conscience.
And this is why I disagree many times with people on this blog. They say we should take smaller steps or pull back. The problem with that strategy is that if you do not confront people on their prejudice, you instead affirm it as just and morally right in their minds and hearts.
Straight people need to understand that when they vote for these amendments, it's not just a political battle. It is also a moral choice, and they have just made the wrong one.
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