Equal Treatment in Marriage Law
I find it exasperating to continue reading articles where same-sex “marriage” proponents always frame their quest for same-sex “marriage” as a civil rights issue (Mass. High Court Ruling Limits Gay Marriage 3/31/06). The Mass. Gay and Lesbian Caucus bemoans their State Supreme Court’s decision of not allowing out-of-state residents to marry, saying that “it’s a painful reminder that we remain second-class citizens.” In truth, the Massachusetts 1913 law simply helps preserve the right of all other states to make their own laws, rather than setting up legal challenges to marriage in other states. Secondly, the Mass. Supreme Court re-interpreted its constitution when it ruled that same-sex couples have the “right” to marry. There is no civil right to marry. Marriage is a privilege the government supports because of the benefits it brings to society and therefore state government has an interest in preserving its integrity by preserving its definition. Marriage law is applied to everyone equally: Must be two humans; a man and a woman, of required age, not married to another, etc. Gays and lesbians seek a redefinition of marriage based on self-interest, and do not meet the requirements of marriage law any more than do polygamists.

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