Yesterday morning, on the news, I heard that Rob Portman changed his position on same-sex marriage. He is a conservative and, up until the past few days, had a strong stance against gay marriage. But now, after his son told him he was gay two years ago, Portman has re-evaluated his thinking, done a little soul searching and has done a complete 180 degrees on gay marriage. Why is it okay now? Well, he wants his son to be able to enjoy the “stability of marriage” that he has experienced for 26 years. And now I am pissed. He was willing to deny every other gay individual what he now wants his son to be able to enjoy. This is exactly what happened with Dick Cheney, who reversed his position once his daughter confessed she was gay. Is this hypocrisy or what?
When conservative politicians change their minds because their children are gay, what are they really saying? To me it says, I don’t care if all of your children are gay. I will not support their right to marry. BUT, if one of my children is gay, I will change every opinion I have ever held and fight for their right to enjoy the privilege of marriage. All of a sudden it doesn’t matter that the Bible says the sanctity of marriage is just between a man and a woman. All that matters is that their son or daughter is gay and they want the best for them. It erases every word they have said on the topic of banning gay marriage. Just like that. If his son had never mentioned being gay, then he would still be voting against gay marriage for every other gay son and daughter in America. But now he has had a change of heart, and thanks to his son, Portman is another politician who will be supporting gay marriage for all. But should it take having a gay child for a politician to support the right of other gay individuals in the country to be able to marry?
As it turns out, most Americans favor gay marriage. Many of them vote. They may have gay children, grandchildren, siblings, friends who want to be able to marry one day. Who do you think they will vote for? The politicians who will deny their loved ones their constitutional rights, or those who support their right to marry? Many conservatives are now rethinking their position on this issue and crossing over to the other side. They are making the right decision, but maybe for the wrong reasons. Is it because they want to be re-elected to office and have to consider that more young people, with open minds, are becoming voters every day? So it seems to me that if the “gay” issue either hits home or they want to continue to serve in public office, politicians like Porter are coming around to “changing” their position on gay marriage. It’s that simple.
I don’t think the ban on gay marriage will be an issue much longer. As hard as they try, politicians cannot hang on to archaic thinking in such progressive times. I really believe that the laws will change soon and all gay people will be able to get married and enjoy the same privileges as heterosexual couples. The sooner the better.
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