Gays in the mist: Why the Republican party should be a champion of gay marriage rights.

The Republican party, the party of small government and individual liberty, time and time again uses the definition of marriage debate as a rally cry for much of its constituency to join united for a cause. But ask yourself, is this the right party for such an opposition? The Conservative Right unequivocally opposes the ability for homosexual couples to be united in marriage under government, not God, government and this opposition has permeated the rank and file of the Republican party. Is the Republican party a haven for anti-gay marriage advocates? Yes. Should the Republican party hold such opinions about gay marriage? No. The Republican party has always been the protective barrier that stood between large, intrusive Federal government and the individual liberty of citizens. The party was founded on such principles and would do well to look to history as their guide on this hot topic.

There was a time when America was split over whether a certain group of people (African American slaves) deserved the same rights as other citizens. The Right is attempting to make the gay marriage issue about the "traditional definition of marriage" and that it is between one woman and one man as defined in the 1994 Defense of Marriage Act. The problem with this definition is that it is rooted in religion not in the US constitution or US law. Individual groups have the protected right to express their beliefs in a public forum and this right must be protected. Religious beliefs, while held by many American citizens, should not dictate the rights of other American citizens. When I hear someone on the right arguing for Federal legislation to define marriage, I have to pinch myself to make sure I am awake. When did the Republican party decide that the federal government had the right to deny an American citizen from marrying another? When did the Republican party decide federal legislation was an avenue worth taking for any cause what so ever? This issue is clouded in blind religious fervor. It is irrelevant whether gay marriage is forbidden by faith. No one is trying to force churches, synagogues or other houses of worship to marry homosexuals, only that the government, both federal and state, recognize and allow civil unions of gay couples. For those on the Right that might argue this topic as a state rights issue, recall, the South's view on slavery as a state rights issue and Abraham Lincolns realization that slavery (like preventing gay marriage) infringed on the individual liberty of US citizens. The constitution trumps the rights of both state and federal government to act against a citizen on such issues.

Remember, the constitution of the United States was founded on the principle that every member of the union was to have equal protection of their individual liberties and their pursuit of happiness. The founders created a document to build a strong government, but more so, a stronger right for the citizenry to be protected from the very same government. Forbidding gay marriage infringes on the individual liberty of American citizens and their personal pursuit of happiness. The American Right looks to prevent American citizens from pursing their protected right to follow their own path in life. Recall the famous words of Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis, "They: The makers of the Constitution: conferred, as against the government, the right to be let alone, the most comprehensive of rights and the right most valued by civilized men." Religion, while undoubtedly the most important of all institutions (in personal life), should not impede on the rights of others who do not believe the same and most importantly should not dictate the laws of the United States or the position of Federal or state governments.