Friday, November 20, 2009

Why Preventing Gay Marriage is a Civil Rights Issue

Keep in mind this example will vary from state to state based on laws and fees.

For an $85 marriage license a couple gets the following rights
- Joint property rights - If the partnership is dissolved they are split 50/50 or if one person dies the other gets the property without it being taxed by the state in most cases.
- Medical oversight if one becomes unresponsive
- General power of attorney
- Protection from testimony with contempt
- Joint car insurance \ homeowners discounts
-Increased retirement savings caps and plans
etc

It is possible for a gay couple to get these rights BUT

- Form a partnership or corporation to protect joint assets $500 ( this type of partnership may not be available in all states)
- Form a trust to transfer assets if someone dies without having to pay taxes $1000-2000
- Living will for Medical Oversight - $300
- Power of Attorney - $200
etc

Even then these rights are not the same or all inclusive as those of an opposite sex couple.

So it is a human rights violation in this sense that we are discriminating.

If you walked into a store and were told because you had red hair you had to pay $5000.00 for an item that I can get for $85 because I am gray by definition your civil rights have been violated because you have been discriminated against.

When one person gets legal rights and protection under the law at a discount to someone else there is something wrong that needs to be addressed from a human rights point of view.

The intent of our system, the beauty of what America is lies in the fact that all people should be treated equal under the law.

The law and the rights of the people should not lie on whether you are rich or poor, black or white, straight or gay, religious or not.

I don't care if you don't like gay people, I don't care if you are the biggest homophobic in the world. Be a patriot. Be a real patriot. Fight for those who you may never know. Who you may not like. Fight because you believe in the ideals of this country that so many have died to uphold.

Honor their sacrifice to insure that we can live in a land where we are free. Where everybody even if you don't like them is equal in the eyes of the law.

Call your congressman and demand that civil unions be recognized.

It is time to stop all the rhetoric about being proud to be an American and start being American.

It is time to be a patriot

A real patriot.

4 comments:

Emily said...

Love this post Brian. I totally agree which is why I once called into a conservative radio station in Wisco - their argument was that if we let gays get married then where do we draw the line? People would want to marry their horses, some woman in Florida wanted to marry a dolphin. My response? If they get better health insurance from the dolphin, by all means, let them get married.

Brianinmpls said...

I hate when people use the animal argument. In order for a contract to be valid in the eyes of the law it has to be mutually agreed to which is between two aware people. The animal argument is just used to side step the real issue.

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