[Author’s Name]
[Institution’s Name]
Essay on Human sexuality
The key issue that is under discussion is that whether gay and lesbian couples should be allowed to marry? The issue will be discussed according to various legislations, survey and researches.
Civil marriage is the primary institution in our society for recognizing our most intimate, committed relationships. It is also the device our society uses to identify our partners for a range of rights and responsibilities, everything from retirement programs to hospital visitations. For years, lesbians and gay men across the country have been fighting for the freedom to marry in order to secure those same rights and recognition. But recently, spurred by a court case in Hawaii, the battle has moved center stage to become one of the burning issues of our time.
Should they be allowed to marry?
In December 1996, a trial court in Hawaii ruled that the state's ban on same-sex marriages violates the equal protection clause of the Hawaii constitution. Two lesbian couples and one gay male couple who were denied marriage licenses in 1991 brought the case. The trial court ruling, the first of its kind in the nation's history held that Hawaii had failed to meet its burden under a Hawaii Supreme Court decision to offer a compelling reason to maintain a discriminatory practice. That earlier decision by the Hawaii Supreme Court had held that the state's refusal to honor same-sex marriages might violate the Hawaii constitution's ban on sex discrimination, just as laws banning marriages between people of different races would violate race anti-discrimination laws.
The trial court ruling was appealed to the Hawaii Supreme Court, which has not yet rendered its final decision. Meanwhile, in November 1998, Hawaii's citizens will vote on whether the legislature should be instructed to amend the state's constitution to prohibit same sex marriage......
