You are walking in the park with your significant other. A couple strolls past you-a homosexual couple, two men. They are holding hands, and then they kiss.
How does this affect you, if at all? Should it affect you?
It shouldn’t. From an external standpoint, what other people do with their lives shouldn’t affect anyone or anything else.
According to the U.S. Constitution-the Fourteenth Amendment, to be precise-all citizens are guaranteed the right to live without being subjected to racial, age or gender discrimination.
With that in mind, why are states passing gay marriage bans? Passing these bans is unconstitutional gender discrimination against homosexual citizens, yet 38 states have successfully done so.
What’s the deal with heterosexuals disregarding the rights of gays and lesbians?
For the first time since slavery ended, a substandard class of American citizens has been created. President Bush has even discriminated against homosexuals in his most recent State of the Union address by stating that he would support a constitutional amendment limiting homosexuals’ rights.
What makes homosexuals so inferior? The reason is ignorance. Individuals who believe that they are superior to anyone else are selfish and inhumane. This particular breed of person has no clue what it means to understand.
Gays and lesbians are people, too- plain and simple. They are not inferior to me or anyone else when it comes to individual rights and liberties. Homosexuals deserve equal treatment and protection under the law.
Homosexual couples also deserve property and inheritance rights, survivor pension plans and the right to make funeral arrangements for their loved ones.
Homosexuals work, eat, sleep and attend church just like the rest of us. They are Americans, with rights and the same goals in life that every human being has. So why don’t they deserve the right to have that beautiful wedding ceremony everyone fantasizes about? They want families. They want peace.
Let’s grant them the same respect and rights heterosexuals possess.
Stephanie Gomez is a junior public relations student from Jacksonville. Contact her at missgomez0917@msn.com