Let me preface this by saying that if you are one of the many people I know who are not a fan of gay marriage being legalised in America, you can kindly stop reading this now, and remove yourself from my social media pages (Facebook, Twitter, etc.), as I have no tolerance for such ignorance.
As I’m sure everyone is aware, gay marriage was legalised in all fifty states of the United States of America. This subject has always caught my attention, not just because I cannot fathom the idea of someone not having the right to marry who they love, but because it is something I personally care about.
While that is all well and good for America, there are still two things that continue to bother me.
One thing is; why did it take so damn long?!
It bothered me that there were only certain states that would allow gay people to marry, while other gay people in other states just had to sit idly by and hope lawmakers in their states to see reason and legalise it in their state. People who wanted to marry in the other states had to move to somewhere where their marriage was legal for their love to be acknowledged.
Even New Zealand legalised same sex marriages two years prior, and our country is quite small in comparison. Before it was fully legalised, we had civil unions – but even having that showed that our country was one step closer than the other states of America were of being more accepting and loving.
In acknowledgement of gay marriage now being legal in America, a worldwide Facebook campaign was launched, where you could apply a rainbow filter onto your own current profile picture to show support of the Supreme Court’s decision. Millions of people took on this (myself included), and while I was doing it to support this incredible decision, there were still a fair few haters out there who decided to have a field day and post their own opinions about the subject of gay marriage.
Which brings me to the second thing that bothers me…
The idea that other people can not only be unsupportive in the idea of gay marriage, but to be so vocal about it. Days after the decision was publicised, I saw a lot of people on social media attack homosexuals in a way that made me feel ashamed to be a part of this society. While we are all entitled to our own opinions, there are better ways of airing disagreements than attacking people on social media.
It makes me angry to know there are these kinds of people in the world, and it angers me even more that they are people I know personally. I see their posts on Facebook attacking homosexuals, and claiming that this decision will lead the way for more adverse things to be legalised. While I said earlier that people have a right to an opinion, it doesn’t mean that you should tell others how to live their lives, and tell them that who they love is wrong. You can have an opinion, but as soon as you tell someone how you think they should be living their lives, that’s when it becomes an issue between you and me.
Let me just state once and unambiguously, that being gay is not a sin in any way.
The more times you attack homosexuality as a lifestyle on social media, the more agitated I will become. Society is messed up enough as it is, and while gay marriage might not be something everyone will agree with, there is no need to be so ignorant and vocal about your protest against it.
We are all entitled to find someone to love, and live our lives with them, but people who protest against homosexuality are doing nothing but creating an environment where homosexuals feel repressed and are forced to either conform, or spend their lives alone.
I have things that I don’t necessarily agree with, but that doesn’t mean I go out of my way to condemn anyone who engages in these activities. What people choose to do with their lives doesn’t bother me, as long as they don’t involve me, then I’m okay.
This is the way people who don’t agree with homosexuality should be. They shouldn’t condemn homosexuals or anyone who supports them, if it doesn’t affect you directly, then stop being so hateful and focus on your own lives and problems.
The world would be a much better place if there was less hate in it.
Sincerely,
Tessa
