The Courage Campaign is asking for feedback from its followers. They want to know where to go next. I posted this comment to them this morning:
"Enforce the separation of church and state. Make this an issue about marriage having two components as seen one way through religious rites and one way through the eyes of the state. Encourage marriage between all people as civil unions first and foremost, making every marriage performed as a legal rite in the eyes of the state. Should couples like to engage in a religious rite as a part of their marriage then they will do so at will. Separating church and state in marriage rites should make a ban on any group's right to marry impossible to uphold."
My contention is that, not only does legislation like Proposition 8 discriminate, it is also a transgression of the boundary between church and state. These are primary tenets of the foundation of this country, and they are also humane and ethical perspectives.
No matter what our orientation with regard to the opposite sex, it is necessary for us all to recognize that banning any group of people from marrying one another is a massive affront to civil rights and is an undeniable act of discrimination. This legislation must also be recognized as precedent for future potential state and federal amendments to the constitutions which would gradually erode what we currently understand as inalienable rights.
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My stepfather, Frank Pasquale, sent this email to me in response to this post. I asked him his permission to add his note to the comments, so here it is:
Your entry concerning Prop 8 caught my attention & got me thinking. I wonder whether the issue is really one of "church and state." It doesn't seem to me that it is a religious conception of "marriage," alone, that is at issue. While religionists, particularly some of the Christian "right" persuasion, may be the most vocal and organized manifestation of popular sentiment, survey data indicate that a consistent majority of Americans oppose same-sex marriage.
Note, for example:
A Stable Majority: Most Americans Still Oppose Same-Sex Marriage
April 1, 2008
Since there are more than 55% religious, some (liberal) religious folks are in favor. There is more to this, I think, than mere opposition on "religious grounds," alone. There are, of course, some clergy who actively approve of, and conduct, same-sex "marriage" ceremonies that do not enjoy state approval.
I think the issue runs deeper. Part of the resistance, apart from religiosity, has to do with an unfounded fear of a "slippery slope" -- that once same-sex marriage is possible, then there is no basis on which to deny ANY forms of "marriage" (like polygamous, polygamous, group, "open," etc.). I think that this lurking fear needs to be brought into the light and allayed.
To this point you might find a piece that appeared in 2005 of interest. If nothing else, I hope you find it thought-provoking.
Look forward to seeing you very soon!
Fondly,
Frank
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