Boy Story: The Road Taken - 65. The Country Leaps to The Left

The Country Leaps to The Left

First, please forgive the history lesson here, but it’s important to relate how everything happened and how it affected us.

When we were married, never in a million years did we expect that the ruling in Massachusetts allowing same sex marriage would create a domino effect. It took a few years, but Connecticut, Iowa, and Vermont followed Massachusetts’ lead. By 2015, 37 states had lifted their bans on same-sex marriage. Then in 2015, the US Supreme Court agreed to hear a case that was actually a conglomeration of four same-sex discrimination cases rolled into one. The plaintiffs wanted a ruling from the highest court in the land that specifically addressed the constitutionality of same-sex marriage.

Both Parker and I generally don’t follow LGBT issues, so we knew nothing of this case until it was in the news. And it wasn’t in the news until it got near the time of the ruling. I think everybody in the country expected it to be shot down in the end. Was the United States really ready for same-sex marriages to be legal? I thought not. Though nearly every person who was LGBT or LGBT-friendly would be in support, we were still in the minority and at the mercy of the conservative majority. If it were put to a vote, the public would most likely vote against allowing same-sex marriage...mainly because it doesn't directly affect them and it's never been a conservative cause. And I realize that. Conservatives are mostly heterosexuals who are looking out for their best self interests. Letting same sex couples marry is a newer concept that not everyone is ready to wrap their heads around (especially when religious beliefs are thrown into the mix). However, as we were about to learn, the Supreme Court doesn’t make decisions based on popularity, they make their decisions based on the U.S. Constitution and the rights it provides to all citizens.

Then the unimaginable happened. On June 26, 2015, in a close 5 to 4 justices decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that same-sex marriage is protected under the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment. As a result, DOMA and all other same-sex marriage bans were declared unconstitutional, and therefore, same-sex marriages must be recognized in all states.

Going into this thing, we were two doe-eyed students who wanted nothing more than to be together always. Whatever we needed to do to make that happen, we were prepared to fight for. We never expected the country to suddenly take a big shift to the left when we were well into our 30s. We thought we’d be dead and buried before that ever happened. All of a sudden, the Supreme Court of the United States decreed that same-sex marriages were valid in all states. Now our 2006 marriage was legal in the whole country!

Some people love to cite Bible passages and religious tenants about how same-sex marriage is morally wrong, and we will go to hell, and it will bring about the end of days and all of that. I would just remind those people that the United States was created based on the separation of church and state. It has always been and will always be. The Constitution of the United States of America supports personal freedom: Freedom of religion, freedom of choice, and freedom to marry who we want. If you don’t like that, you have every right to go live elsewhere more in line with your values. Otherwise, you can stay here and continue to enjoy your personal freedoms while other citizens enjoy theirs.

In retrospect, very little has changed since same-sex marriage became legal in the United States. It didn’t act to demean heterosexual marriages as some had suggested, and it did not bring about the end of days. What it did was end the discrimination of tens of thousands of committed same-sex couples who simply wanted to build a life together just like everyone else. Shouldn’t each person be allowed to find his or her own happiness? Doesn't the United States Declaration of Independence state that every citizen has the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness? I've read it, and it does.

I know what makes me happy and he has been a constant inspiration and companion…oh, and he wanted to get a dog, so now we are three.

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