Last June, a landmark court case forever changed the core of the United States. After months of debating, the United States Supreme Court decided in a 5-4 decision that the fundamental right to marry is guaranteed to same-sex couples. The Supreme Court now requires all states to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples and to recognize same-sex marriages validly performed in other jurisdictions.
After years of struggle, this decision confirmed what everyone knows to be true: that all love is equal. But even after a monumental win, things didn’t just change overnight. Love won but homophobia didn’t die off. Some states refused to issue marriage licenses, most famously Kim Davis, whose religious beliefs got her arrested after refusing to marry six same-sex couples. On April 5, 2016, the governor of Mississippi signed the Religious Liberty Accommodations Act which allows businesses and religious groups to deny the LGBT community certain services and would be protected from any punishment. Among some of the rights being restricted are adoption and foster care services, protection from being fired or refused employment, ability to rent or sell property, access to counseling or sex reassignment surgeries, and access to wedding services (DJs, dresses, limousine rental). In addition, employers and school administrators would be allowed to establish sex-specific standards or policies concerning employee or student dress or grooming, and dictate access to bathrooms, locker rooms, etc. This act basically throws away all the progress the United States has made towards equality by bringing same-sex couples back to square one.
And so we need to ask ourselves these important questions:
What’s so wrong about being gay? The answer: nothing. There is absolutely wrong with boys liking boys, girls liking girls, or either sex liking both genders. The heart wants what the heart wants. That’s all there is to it really. Being gay doesn’t mean that they’re a different species. Just like there are people of different races, colors, and religions, people can love differently, and it shouldn’t be frowned upon.
Then why are people so against the idea of it? There are many reasons that people aren’t on board with same-sex couples. Some are uncomfortable with the idea of it, some think gay people are too flamboyant, but the most common belief is that they believe that same-sex marriage is a sin.
Does it say anywhere in the Bible that same-sex marriage is wrong? Yes, it actually does. In the book of Leviticus, it says, “You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination.” I googled it, I cracked open a Bible, and it really is there. But then I kept reading. The book of Leviticus also bans a lot of different things we should keep in mind: We can’t eat fat, touch an unclean animal, let our hair become unkempt, tear our clothes, eat any animal which walks on all fours and has paws; women can’t go to church 33 days after giving birth to a boy (66 for a girl); incest, stealing, lying, mixing fabrics in clothing, planting different seeds in the same field, trimming your beard, cutting your hair at the sides, and getting tattoos are among the things that are prohibited.
If homosexuality is wrong because Leviticus says so, then shouldn't we also obey the other laws about shellfish, seed, fabrics, and fields because that is in Leviticus as well? If not, then why not? Why would Christians pick and choose what parts of the Bible to follow?
The fact of the matter is that some of the things Leviticus suggests are just so outdated. We eat shellfish; not trimming your beard is just a bad idea altogether; and if we didn’t mix fabrics with clothing, what would we wear? The Bible is used to justify many practices like slavery, sexism, and homophobia, but does that make it OK? And shouldn't we by default follow every rule written?
Just like racism and feminism, the road to equality for same-sex marriage will be a long one. We can’t change people’s opinions and we can try educating them but even that doesn’t work sometimes. But we can hope for and campaign for is for the Religious Liberty Accommodations Act to be repealed in Mississippi. This is not just a gay rights issue; it’s a civil rights issue. What this is potentially leading up to is anti-gay segregation and the United States has come so far for this to happen again now or in the future. What we can do now is vote for a presidential candidate who is for same-sex marriage, demand for change, or even just wait it out. Let the older generations die out so that the new open-minded generations can take charge. But what’s going on in Mississipi is simply appalling and unconstitutional. People should be able to love whom they want to and not fear of being kicked out of a restaurant or being denied assistance in a hospital. Our own biases and prejudices and religious views should not affect the lives of other people whose goal is to be happy.
