From the Baltimore Examiner

Why are gay Americans different from others?

by Kelly Carson

Tuesday, December 5, 2006

BALTIMORE -- Borrowing words from New Jersey's former governor, James McGreevey, "I am a gay American."

As Maryland's Court of Appeals begins this week to debate the merits of a Baltimore Circuit Court ruling making unconstitutional the state's law defining marriage as only between a man and a woman, I believe there are some issues that readers should consider.

Yes, it's an emotional issue -- one that challenges the core belief of some people and rattles the faith of others.

My question is simple. Why?

What impact does the fact that I am in a committed relationship with another woman have on your marriage? How does the fact that my partner and I were legally joined in a civil union in Vermont affect any marriage between a man and a woman?

I understand that some people fear that legalizing gay marriage will put religious institutions in a situation where they would be asked to perform ceremonies that run counter to their tenets. But don't most people who marry in a church find churches that support their beliefs, straight or gay? I know I wouldn't want to be married in a church that didn't want me as a member of its congregation.

A lot of people, even some in our newsroom, vehemently disagree with me on this topic. Luckily, I am judged here on my abilities as a journalist, not as a lesbian. These people would have me and my partner live our lives as second-class citizens. Sound familiar? It wasn't that long ago that it was illegal for a white person and a black person to marry in every state except Vermont.

One brave couple from Virginia, Mildred and Richard Loving, challenged the ban on interracial marriage after they pleaded guilty in 1959 to violating the state's anti-miscegenation laws. Their one-year jail sentence was suspended only after the Lovings agreed to leave the state and not return for at least 25 years. But in November 1963, they filed a motion in state court to overturn the court's decision and set aside their convictions, contending Virginia's ban on interracial marriage violated the 14th Amendment. The case went to the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled in 1967 that Virginia's law was indeed unconstitutional. By that time, only 16 states in the country banned interracial marriage, and those laws were stripped from the books following the high court's decision.

The justices said rather poetically that denying people from marrying because they are different is "odious to a free people whose institutions are founded upon the doctrine of equality."

Why, then, are the hundreds of thousands of gay Americans any different? Granted, I may be among a fortunate few of gay Americans who found acceptance from my family. I have never been "out and loud," nor have I ever been party to an alleged vast gay agenda to infiltrate institutions held sacred by heterosexuals.

As I near 50 years old, my wants are simple. I would like to ensure that my partner can come see me if I am hospitalized. I want her to have full rights of inheritance if I should pass away before her. I want her to be able to make decisions about my health care if I become unable to do that for myself.

While we are able to take legal steps to ensure most of this happens, why should we be forced to go to the expense of drawing up legal documents to accomplish what others are granted through marriage rights?

It sounds ridiculous that 39 years ago the Supreme Court of the United States had to force this country to accept marriage between two people of different races. Isn't it equally as ridiculous to deny that same right to people who just happen to be gay?

Kelly Carson is a staff writer with The Baltimore Examiner. She can be reached at kcarson@baltimoreexaminer.com.