Legalizing gay marriage is a hugely debated topic worldwide, with very strong arguments on both sides. After thoroughly researching this topic, considering both the pros and cons, I have come to the conclusion that gay marriage should be legalized because all people are created equal and should have the same rights.

One of the biggest arguments against this, is that the Bible claims that marriage is between a man and a woman. I disagree with this, and would like to say that the definition can change. The Bible was created 35,000 years ago, and some definitions are outdated. At that time, they killed anyone who practiced homosexuality, but we have grown as a country. A lot of things have changed. Also, in the Bible, it says that God loves everybody and that you should love your neighbor. People who discriminate gay people and are religious aren’t really loving their neighbor. I think it’s time the bible is thought about differently. “Almost 20% of the world’s population doesn’t believe in any religion. Now, thinking that this is a decision for the government to make, executive branches should not base their decisions on religion because there are so many different religions that you can’t make a law based on one.” -Rebecca Erickson, my fellow classmate.

“It is immoral and unnatural.” This quote is a fallacy, using “immoral” and “unnatural” to push the idea that gay marriage is all these things instead of proving it. It is simply begging the claim. However, I still can argue that claim. First of all, The Constitution clearly states that all men are created equal. It is also believed that at least 9 million Americans are gay, so does that really mean it’s unnatural? Also, gay people are just like you! The only thing that is different is their sexuality. “I’m not gonna let my sexuality confine or define me. It’s a part of me. Not all of me.” A quote from Connor Franta. Another argument against this is that legalizing gay marriage will expand to other types of marriage. Again, over 9 million Americans are gay, so this topic affects a large portion of our country, as for other types of marriages aren’t a huge problem. 

Our history is full of ups and downs, hugely involving human rights. “Throughout our history, we have fought discrimination. We have joined together to recognize equality for racial minorities, women, people with disabilities, immigrants… legalizing gay marriage is the right thing to do and it’s time.” Former Washington governor Christine Gregoire stated in January of 2012. This quote perfectly describes the situation. We can avoid all of the chaos and the discrimination if we just give gay people the rights that they deserve. Why would we want to repeat all the terrible things history has taught us not to do? Here are some of the things that married couples have the right to do: receive social security, healthcare, and hospital visitation rights. We are just denying a large portion of our society those rights.

Did you know that couples without kids outnumber couples with kids? This doesn’t make sense, for a lot of the arguments against legalizing gay marriage say that the whole point of marriage is to reproduce. I think not. You see, 6% of women are infertile, meaning that they can’t reproduce, yet the government doesn’t deny them the right of marriage. A lot of people say that children are raised better with a mom and a dad. For example: Girls who are raised apart from fathers have a higher risk of being involved in sexual activities and teenage pregnancy, and, children raised by same-sex parents suffer more difficulties in life. However, there is also something that contradicts that statement. An article from debate.org mentions, “Scientific studies have found that children raised by homosexual parents are every bit as capable of proving heterosexual parenting to their own children later in life.”  Right now in America there are over 115,000 kids waiting in an orphanage to be adopted, so legalizing gay marriage can help lower that number.

Everyone has been created for a reason, and we should respect them for who they are. “An overwhelming amount of research has been done showing that homosexuality has a biological causation; not a genetic one, but a biological one.” Says balancedpolitics.org. What this quote is trying to get across is that people don’t choose to be gay. They need to be accepted for who they are because they can’t change, even if they wanted to. State by state is legalizing gay marriage, and it allows more and more people to get married. Life is about happiness, and love is the key thing to fulfill that.