The Gay Spot: We support the fight for Gay Marriage

There is a lot of debate surrounding the issue of gay marriage at the moment with religious leaders denouncing coalition plans to allow gay couples the right to marry.

Martha Kirkpatrick, editor of our LGBT section The Gay Spot, outlines her (and our) support for gay marriage.

Let’s be clear about one thing: the world will not end because we allow gay couples to marry. Western civilisation will not fall because we allow gay couples to marry. The biggest threat is, and has always been, hatred and bigotry and it will be those two things that will bring down society if anything. There is no rational, sane argument against gay marriage; just incoherent ramblings of people hiding behind their religion to justify outdated, antiquated and homophobic views.

The ‘traditional’ family will carry on regardless of gay and lesbian couples marrying; children will continue to be born to heterosexual relationships be they married or otherwise. The legalisation of gay marriage will not result in straight couples suddenly stop having children – like the argument against gay marriage would suggest. Straight couples will continue to marry and have children the only difference would be gay couples would have the legal right to marry as well.

Marriage has already changed many times throughout the centuries; it has changed to reflect the values and morals of society at the time. There was a time when marriages were arranged in the Western world – a concept many now find abhorrent. There was a time when marriages were about business arrangements, political unions or joining together two powerful households. There was a time when people didn’t marry for love but married because it was of an advantage to them. Nowadays marriage is about the loving commitment between two people but it wasn’t always so. So marriage has already changed and to someone born a thousand years ago our understanding of marriage today would be radical and alien to them.

Religion often finds itself at odds with the modern world which has changed so much in a relatively short space of time. It’s little wonder that Church attendance is constantly falling when people look to the organisation and see such hateful views – denying loving couples the right to commitment themselves to each other. The world has changed and the Church, in all of its denominations, has to accept that and come to terms with a society that is more accepting than liberal than the Church leaders would like.

Gay marriage is already legalised in a number of countries around the world and we would only be ‘shamed’ in the ‘eyes of the world’ if we did not follow the lead of other. If we pandered to the opinions of a vocal minority and reversed direction on gay rights we would shame ourselves not only the eyes of the world but in the eyes of our own citizens as well. After all the LGBT community is a part of this country; its members abide by the same laws as everyone else and pay the same taxes as everyone else – so is it not fair that its members enjoy the same rights as everyone else too? {jcomments off}