Equality makes moves in 2014

There has been a perceived turn in the gay rights tide lately, and the Editorial Board couldn’t be more for it. Several legal occurrences in the past few weeks reflect growing acceptance and equality.

Kentucky, a southern conservative state that is usually about 10 years behind anything trendy — especially legislation — has begun to chip away at its marriage law. A federal judge declared Kentucky must recognize gay marriages that were legally performed in other states.

This is not exactly legalization of gay marriage, but it is closer than Kentucky has ever been, and honestly, it’s surprising for the red state. A pleasant surprise.
Overturning anti-gay legislation in conservative states has been a trend for the judicial branch lately.

A federal judge in Virginia ruled the state’s same-sex marriage ban was unconstitutional, and relevant rulings have been made in Oklahoma and Utah recently as well.

Another big step for equality was made with California’s Republican congressman Carl DeMaio releasing a campaign ad featuring his partner.

This is a big step not only for Republicans, who need to once and for all abandon their losing anti-gay tirade, but also for equality in politics in general.

Campaigns often feature a politician’s home life as a sign of family values and stability.
Through their marriages and families, politicians try to show the voters they have the same morals and social values as them. This ad shows the public that having a gay partner is just as stable as having a straight one. A core family and morals aren’t at risk in a gay family.

Though sexuality and home life probably should not be the reason someone gets elected, the truth about politics is that personal lives become public. This campaign opens the way for a party to begin seeing gay Americans as equal.

The sports and entertainment industries have also made leaps for gay equality with NFL Player Michael Sam’s announcement that he is gay. While some sportscasters claimed this would severely affect his draft chances, the response from his fellow NFL players was pretty widely supportive.

Most tweets from fellow players contained messages of pride and respect, with declarations of nonchalance about any players’ sexuality — all that matters is how you play.

This is a leap forward in the same vein as DeMaio’s campaign commercial.

It’s past time for America to stop treating same-sex couples like abnormalities. Sexuality does not affect a person’s ability to succeed in their chosen profession, and both of these examples show this to the public.

Even the forces of intolerance are on the retreat. A proposed and thinly-veiled Jim Crow-esque bill that would have allowed Kansas businesses and government employees to refuse services to gay couples on the basis of religious freedom looks bound to fail in the Kansas senate.

Kansas Senate President Susan Wagle stated, “A strong majority of my members support laws that define traditional marriage ... However my members also don’t condone discrimination.” 

Time and time again, equality for same-sex couples gets closer and closer, and though we still have a long way to go, it’s pretty obvious by now the American public is tired of moving backwards.

Marriage equality is gaining speed all over the country, and more and more public figures are coming out and making stands for equality.

Someday, the discrimination against gay people will be an embarrassing phase of our past, and those who continue siding with it today will prove to be on the wrong side of history tomorrow.

­— opinion@idsnews.com
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