Dear Person Wearing A Vote Yes T-Shirt At The Minnesota
State Fair,
First of all I would like to congratulate you for wearing a
shirt that expresses your feelings and opinions on a subject that has a good
deal of controversy, this takes a lot of guts! I understand this action
completely because I too wore a
politically motivated shirt, the only difference is that my shirt said “Vote
No: Don’t Limit The Freedom To Marry”. As you can see we are on the complete
opposite ends of this issue, but this doesn’t mean I am going to come at you
with disrespect, hatred and contempt. If I may I’d like to point out a few
thoughts to you and even pose a question for you to ponder in your spare time.
First, the United States of America is a country founded on
the principle of the separation of church and state. As most people in support
of this constitutional amendment have a strong faith base for their stance on
the issue I would like to point this out. My challenge to you is to attempt to
separate your religious beliefs and the true question of this argument that
being the following: Is it acceptable for a government to deny equal rights to
a group of American citizens? I am very aware that many people get married in
churches and that religion has a lot to do with marriage ceremonies for many
people. But to you I would like to point out that to get married in this
country you need to get a license through the state and not through the church.
Second, are you aware that within the bible there are a lot
of rules that dictate how you should live your life? One of these rules of
course is to Love They Neighbor which means that you need to love everyone and
treat everyone the same. Another set of rules in the Bible provide restrictions
for the eating of shellfish, the beating of women, the beating of children who
disobey and even a few rules about being dead. Yes in this section of the Bible
it also says that when two men lay together it is an abomination. My point here
is this plain and simple, you may hate me for being a gay man but I had better
not catch you eating shrimp and if your little brat talks back to you I want to
be there when you kill the little kid!
Third, how does the marriage between two men or two women
threaten the significance of your marriage to your spouse? I have heard several
talks about the sanctity of marriage and how sacred the bond between a man and
a woman is. Why then is the divorce rate sky high? Why then are Hollywood
celebrities allowed to marry for a ratings stunt and get divorced months or
even days later? These two stances don’t seem to jive with each other. Another
question that I have for you is this, how would you feel if the issue wasn’t
gay marriage but the issue of bi-racial marriage? This is of course as you know
is an issue that was a major deal nearly fifty years ago.
Now finally I have a few questions to pose to you. Have you
ever thought that you may be on the wrong side of history? Not so long ago
there was a very loud group of people who were outraged when a black woman sat
on the front of a bus and demanded that segregation continue in this country.
How is the issue of equal rights for blacks different from the demand for equal
treatment of gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgendered people? Also if you
are opposed to so called gay lifestyle why do you continue to benefit from the
work of many talented gay and lesbian people? You cannot be disgusted by my
lifestyle but laugh your butt off at Will & Grace or Ellen DeGeneres this
simply doesn’t work.
These are simply my thoughts as a gay man who simply feels
that this issue is one of basic human dignity and respect. We need to all have
respect for each other and truly there are bigger issues in this world to
confront that two men expressing their love for one another and declaring that
in marriage to the world. Gay and Lesbian women are not ill, perverted or
mentally disturbed and no we have not simply met the right guy/gal yet. We are
simply people who want to be equal members in American society and want the
promises of the constitution upheld most importantly the following phrase: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are
created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable
Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
I hope that you have read this and truly considered the
information it contains. I realize too that you may read this and regard it as
garbage and dismiss it immediately. In closing I would like to pose one last challenge;
get to know a gay man or woman and I mean really know that person, learn about
them and see if your opinion of us changes.
With Respect and Hope,
A Gay Man Wearing a VOTE NO T-Shirt At The Minnesota State
Fair
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