There is much to say about the election of Barack Obama, and no doubt we will. For the moment, however, let me say that it's ironic that the Americans who were instrumental in bringing our first president of color into office (black and Hispanic voters) ALSO played a major role in rolling back progress on the road to egalitarian same sex relationships and marriage. Exit polls show that approximately 70 percent of voters in these groups supported gay marriage bans.
This was almost entirely religiously inspired, of course, given the disproportionate numbers of Catholic and evangelical Christians in these two populations. "Thank you Jesus for delivering Barack Obama to the great white house built by slaves...and for protecting us from the sin of loving the wrong person." Right brain open. Left brain close.
OK, so I don't want to offend anyone who believes that homosexuality is a sin but please, read on.
I'm wondering when members of these two groups will comprehend what it has taken white Americans so long to understand -- when we deny others the valued rights that our own group relishes we inevitably weaken our own grasp of these rights along with our ability of our government to exercise them when needed. It's a rather sobering realization, to be sure, and one that anyone who does not have a reserved seat at table of the ruling classes would be wise to note.
What's truly ironic about this, in my humble opinion, is that in another 20-30 years the children and grandchildren of the Obama youth may well look back to this election as another "shameful chapter" in this country's history of unequal treatment of minority groups. "Oh yeah, sure they elected Obama," I can almost hear some politicized college student say, "but they buried the rights of the gay ( or some new term) community. What good was it?" Electing a black man will be less noteworthy than disenfranchizing a gay person.
The difference will be that when this conversation occurs the fingers will be pointed in some unexpected directions given how anti-gay marriage amendments were supported by so many racial and ethnic minorities.
Most of the time I open my mouth I seem to be wrong--I was just reminded by a former student that last fall I stated that this country would never elect a man named "Hussein" as its leader, after all--but mark my words, the youth of the future are going to be somewhat more open-minded about race than current generations but they will surely also see homosexuality very differently. They are, I am convinced, going to be much more open about LGBT issues than voters today. I guess every generation will have to wage its battle with bigotry and fear...and grow stronger from it.
Rock on to them. Personally, I must say that I hope they make more progress on this issue than the current generations are making.
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The whole election of Barack Obama has opened my eyes to what people really are like in the United States. Being an Obama supporter, it is very easy for me to see when people are outwardly stating their opinions about different topics in the world. For example, my father is a hardcore Republican and when I asked him what he thought about this election, his immediate response was, “Well, I am petrified that it is quite possible that our new president will be a black man associated with so many terrorists.” After he later found out that I would be voting for Obama, he seemed to keep more of his thoughts to himself. I have yet to speak with my grandparents about the new president position, but being from the South, I am sure they are not too thrilled. Although my dad and his parents strongly do not support the idea that we now have a black president, I am extremely excited, as are many of my friends (people of my age). I feel like it is a generational thing that the elders do not support such a president, but the people that are in my age group are more open to the idea. This goes along with the idea that was stated in class that no matter what race anyone is and no matter what race our new president is, everyone should be proud to say that they are an American. Obama is already trying his hardest to better America, and for goodness sake he hasn’t even been inaugurated yet! Through the generations, people, I feel, will eventually evolve more and grow accustomed to differences in the world. Just like the blog said, “the youth of the future are not going to see race the way we see race.”
I once thought that religion was one platform where folks united for the greater "good."
It saddens me that once again, the bastions of religious thought have singled out a group and used their influence to strip said group of their rights.
Now, I know that when it was done in the name of slavery it was done for financial gain and the pursuit of a system of supremacy that extends to this day. But what do we all gain from stripping non-heterosexuals from their civil rights? I guess my question is, who is gaining from this at the end of the tunnel? Is it the same religious organizations that fought against this? Is there a piece of heaven waiting for us for supporting this and eradicating this so-called sinful attack on the definition of marriage?
I personally find it fitting that at a time when our educational system is doing considerably worse than other developed nations, measures like these are passed.
If folks only knew that church-sanctioned marriage is a relatively new phenomenon considering the lengthy history of human existence. If they also knew that marriage around bible times was simpler than the concoction we have made it to be today, they would possibly think otherwise of this "hallowed" institution which half of its constituents are doomed to leave behind (as in, 50% of marriages are doomed to end in divorce)
And for the women who supported this, have they heard of a time when women's rights were oppressed on the basis of many "truths" found in the good book? When women were not even allowed by law to own property and were stripped of their land or encouraged to remarry to keep it in the event of their husband's demise?
Nov. 4 is truly one step forward and two steps back. This and Ward Connerly's near success in Colorado are proof positive that we should not claim ultimate victory in the battle for equality.
On Election Day, I felt excited and relieved that a black man had finally made it into the White House. It was actually a restoration of hope in the capabilities of human nature to judge on character rather than on color. Then, the next day, I received the news that homosexual marriage was banned in states throughout the United States. I could hardly believe it; it felt as if we moved backward as soon as we moved forward.
Personally, I could never deny love in any form between any two people. It seems we are withholding rights from homosexuals. Throughout human history, we have been proved that perhaps we may be wrong. Now homosexuals are becoming the group who are denied the rights of marriage. Marriage is a personal affair. Why should it matter to another person who another person loves? Why is it possible that we can decide who should and should not be recognized in relationships? Why are homosexual relationships labeled as inferior to the heterosexual marriages? Our discriminations are never completely erased. We only move discrimination from one group of people to another group. My hope for the future is that the discrimination issue will be more open-minded and only a stage that each person can move beyond. I hope that as homosexuality becomes more aware to public attention, the acceptance will grow as well.
You know what really bothers me most about how gay marriage and homosexuality, is it wouldn’t even an issue if it wasn’t taught to be one. Maybe I am misinformed and if that is true than I apologize, but I basically have observed that the only reason that people look at it differently is because some religions said it was wrong. But I don’t get why. You should love thy neighbor; I don’t see why it has to be man and woman. I mean I guess our bodies are set up that way but obviously there are ways around that. And I personally have a hard time believing that a long time ago people did not practice homosexuality. Imagine though, if without the religions telling us that the higher being only accepts if you are in love with a member of the opposite sex, who would have thought it was wrong? I don’t know why anyone would, because it’s just being in love with another person. Love, what most people believe is the ultimate happiness in life. I just get really bothered when people, who have no idea what it is like to be homosexual, have the nerves to not only look down on those who are, but try to make rules and guidelines for them.
Prominently displayed on the front page of the Friday, November 7, 2008 edition of the USA Today, it states, “Hopes are high for race relations: Election a catalyst for U.S. optimism.” The article, which outlines reaction to the election of Barack Obama to the office of the US President, claims, “Confidence that the nation will resolve its racial problems rose to a historic level.” The debate on the timing of the racial problem resolution could wage for years. The point of this article is not to exclaim this one election proves everything is ok. It does show we have reached a tipping point, one that must be pushed and challenged in the years to come. However, like Sam, it reminds me we are not there in many other arenas.
In the wake of the election of the first African-American President, Sam immediately looked beyond race relations into the battle of equal rights for same sex couples. Undoubtedly, 2008 will be a year forever engraved in the calendar of race relations. Yet, Sam’s immediate challenge to our forward movement is important. The curriculum of SOC 119 has opened my eyes to so many racial injustices within our borders. However, looking back in history, it is eerily similar to the current affliction of homosexuals. Much like interracial marriages were ostracized and outlawed, the validity of same sex marriages is a hotly debated contemporary topic.
The majority of those Americans who voted in 2008 could picture an African-American taking the oath of office in January. I challenge those same voting Americans to envision a gay, white man taking that same oath this January. I do not believe contemporary Americans would elect a gay man or woman as President. This fact shows me maybe we have reached an important milestone in race relations and should potentially turn our attention to homosexual relationships. It would be hard to argue the story lines are not congruent.
I think it is amazing that in the same state that found same sex marriage morally wrong voted down the proposition that would have required parental notification and a forty-eight hour waiting period before a minor could have an abortion. I am not one to judge nor am I attempting to inflict my views onto others but I personally find something really odd with this entire situation. If I had to put race relations side by side with other issues such as same sex marriage I would have to say people can’t deal with both issues at once. Which in my mind really doesn’t make any sense because have become so accustomed to multitasking. Yet every time we start to focus in depth on an issue, such as race relations there is a period of time when other issue just get completely ignored. It’s kind of a shame, I understand why others are against same sex marriage but it doesn’t make complete sense to me. It isn’t like my own freedoms are being compromised when homosexual couples get married so then why the big deal? I’m no saint and have certainly have not lived a “sin free” life, so then what gives me the right to tell other how to live their life?
Now that this election is finally over I feel like a weight has been lifted off of me. I was getting pretty tired of hearing about it every day. With that being said, I can honestly say I am very impressed by America. In these days after the election, the impact of what we accomplished is starting to sink in (by the way I was a McCain supporter basically because of my views on taxes). It makes me proud to see that we are starting to look past race and put a multi-racial man in power. When I heard about gay marriage being banned in states across America just days after the election I have to admit that a lot of my new pride in America quickly disappeared. I am still trying to figure out why everyone cares so much? Who really cares that two men or women want to get married? I thought marriage was supposed to be about love, if they love each other why are we trying to stop them. It just does not make any sense to me. It’s almost like the government is acting like a stuck up father who does not want his kid to date a certain person, we have no place telling anyone who and who they cannot be in a relationship with. I wonder how long it is going to take everyone else to realize this?
The night of November 4, 2008, I watch the results of this election come in—not just for the presidential race but also the many ballot measures being voted on. As the results came in favor of Barack Obama, I was ecstatic but still in shock at the numbers being reported on all the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Queer (LGBTQ) related initiatives. Obama as the first biracial president-elect was the only presidential candidate in history to mention the LGBTQ community in all his speeches since the beginning—even in his acceptance speech that night, he affirms us, LGBTQ individuals in this nation. I just wonder how many people that supported him took the time to really listen to what he was saying in his speeches. People can say that their just words but when I heard Obama’s affirmation of one of my identities and my relationship, I could not hold back the tears.
I will not say that I understand where people, who supported the ban on gay marriage, are coming from but I am just asking to have all my civil rights. I do not care what you call it. In my ideal world, all state recognized unions would be labeled civil unions and unions done in a religious form can keep the label of marriage. I will not force people to call my union with my partner a marriage. I just ask to have all the rights heterosexuals have. I will not go on and on about the details but I just want people to acknowledge them.
I am from Arizona, one of the states with a gay marriage ban on the ballot and passed. My mom was one of the many supporters of the ban. I do not how much more personal it can get than that which is why I will not go on to say that the people who are being discriminating against are your children, siblings, parents, etc., because I know that does not always make a difference; but, I do want to state it this way: if I did not have to approve of your marriage then why should I have to wait for your approval.
I find it absolutely outrageous that a country promoting change and hope, historically electing a black man as President can do so while at the same time take 100 steps back by removing the rights of same sex couples in terms of marriage. I am scared to say that Sam could very well be right in the sense that 20-30 years from now, that generation can look back and see this historical time period as being a “shameful chapter.” This country was slowly but surely taking its amazing steps towards change and towards acceptance of minority groups with the Obama victory, but how can we as a country say that we have come THAT far in electing a black President when at the same time we are violating the rights of another minority group. Sure, the African American minority is taking its steps towards change, but what about the other minorities? How much time does it take for that change? The move towards banning gay marriages is clearly religiously related. As mentioned in my discussion group, how can we prevent a same sex couple from getting married due to religious issues when majority of married couples in this country barely practice religion. Hopefully, long with racial issues, time will resolve many things. It took a hundred years before a black man could be elected into the White House. Racial groups have definitely been struggling for immense amount of years, but do people just forget about the gay community? They as well have been struggling for acceptance, when will it be their turn?
I’m discovering this correlation between some of the minority Obama supporters being those who also support the ban on gay marriage for the first time when reading the blog. I’m not a political person whatsoever, but when reading about this, it makes me rethink one of the personal ideas I hold about race relations. In my own personal opinion, despite that fact that religious views may change the circumstances, I honestly do not believe that a person can FULLY, COMPLETELY be in the commitment phase on the racial identity scale unless they are as comfortable, or at least as accepting, of people in the LGBT community as they are of people across races.
In minority culture, it’s sometimes a known thing that there’s a sense of masculinity and strong pride among males in which they have to be man’s men and providers, and with that often comes homophobic undertones. Religion could also play a part in this, as there are people of color who are dedicated to the church. Overall, it’s just not that surprising to me that something like this is going on. What I wish people of color and minorities would realize fully, in general, though, is that people who are LGBT are, in fact, minorities, fitting almost every sense of the description.
These people voted and dedicated their voice to change when supporting and voting for President Elect Obama, and I don’t see it as a step backwards that we’ve made this change in the world of race and NOT in the world of LGBT rights, but instead just a realization that there are a lot more steps to overcome for us as a country.
Discussed in the blog, this election has two major issues being addressed. The first is that the president elect is biracial and the second is that we took away some of the few rights homosexuality had been previously given. The question that really should be presented is whether these issues coincide. I believe they do because both issues deal with the rights of minorities. The first change of these issues is putting someone in office who is not a white, Anglo-Saxon Protestant, which gives hope to all people of color that did not exist before. This is a large step for racial minorities that should be celebrated and inspirational as is being done. Yet, this change is neglecting a change for the other minorities, homosexuals. If we are going to give rights and hope to people of racial minorities then we should be willing to do the same for the homosexual minority as well. We can look at the different minorities as being separate, but then we still must consider them as the individuals and citizens of United States that they are and see the rights that they are being denied. It is a tease to all Americans to give some minorities the respect and equality they have not previously received and then not do the same for the other minorities. Who are we to still leave religion to decide what rights people should have when religion was created long before any of these minority issues were of largely publicized concerns and were as important as they are today. If we are now a country of change then we also need to change all of the aspects of government that may be limiting anyone’s power and rights at this time, not just the racial limitations.
The way I see it is we can scream on roof tops that we want to see change and see new beginnings but just because your saying it doesn't mean that you mean it. Sam made a great point by saying that many minorities were voting for Obama because they wanted to see change, they wanted to see hope, they wanted to see a minority in office. Those same people were agreeing to ban gay marriages because it was against their religion. That's fine if it’s against your religion, nobody is judging you...but why are you judging others? Okay, it's in your religion to not be gay that's fine but who are you to think its okay to tell SOMEONE ELSE they cannot be gay. It is their decision to be gay, is your life really going to be ruined if you see a same sex couple holding hands in public? Is that going to disturb your day-to-day routine? If it does, that’s pathetic. People need to start minding their own business and realize they do not have the power to tell anyone what to do. Nobody is telling you that you have to be gay and marry someone of the same sex so why are you telling gays they have to be heterosexual? I just feel like it shouldn't matter whether or not you agree with gay marriages, it should matter what you do. If you are not gay and you choose not to be gay because of your religion that's fine, go and live your life...don't judge someone else for the decisions they make or forbid them from doing anything, it's their prerogative. In conclusion, people need to start minding their own business, the world isn’t gonna go up in flames.
Progress? I guess it is a much slower process then I even thought it was. I remember my grandmother saying that we will have an African American before we have a woman and we do. I was so excited when some states opened up the right to marriage to gay couples… I thought to myself wow, here we go! (In a positive way). I find it almost incomprehensible that the same people who voted Obama into office voted in support of the gay marriage ban. I was raised a Christian and still practice, the bible says that being gay wrong, ok I understand but my issue with this is that the bible says it is also wrong to lie. If we “straight, normal” Americans tell gay people that they are wrong that homosexuality is a sin and we tell them to deny their feelings and live in opposition to them are we not telling them to lie? Is that not just as wrong? I think that America was founded on certain principles and certain beliefs, however, things change! People change, they evolve in mind, body and spirit. Social issues change and we have to change with them, Obama as President-elect shows that change happens, so why do we continue to oppress people and their way of life, different is better, who wants to be the same? I think that we have to wait for the older generations to die off and then maybe we can afford every American the rights they deserve.
First and foremost I want to say how proud I am of our country being so open minded and electing a black president. We as a country have came a long way in our thinking process. However, I feel that sometimes we can be open to too many things. I know I may sound very close minded when you read this but I do not believe in Gay Marriages and Gay Rights solely because of my religion. My religion has taught me that it is wrong and there are simply no exceptions. Some things just shouldn’t be allowed. I know everyone may say that it is their right to do whatever they want and they have all of these different interpretations of personal rights. Regardless of all of that, marriage is a sacred bond between and male and a female, not a male and male or female and female. I believe that if they were truly meant to be together, they would be able to technically have kids (excluding heterosexual couples that just can’t have kids) and they wouldn’t have been born with the same body parts (ex; private parts). I believe its wrong. I don’t dislike people who choose to live those life styles, I just don’t agree with it. I still have friends and family members are homosexual but I’m not very close to them. I just think it’s wrong but that’s just my opinion.
In Response to “One Notable Irony on Election Day”
I find it really rather disheartening to read that the groups that support anti-homosexuality are largely minority groups. From experience, albeit limited, I’ve noticed that groups of minorities stick together when they are the only representatives in a group of the majority. In my discussion group, the minorities represented seem to form one group to represent the minority viewpoint. Although they are all different representations of minorities, they seem to all have something in common and somewhat bond together in their view points offering perspective that cannot be given from a white. Similarly, I would almost expect minorities to support homosexuality in the same instance. LGBT are also minorities in the world and would assume they would be supported by fellow minorities. However, assuming never gets anyone very far. I was so surprised when I read that 70% of voters in minority groups support gay marriage bans. It seems like our country has taken steps forward, but has also done a fair share of backpedaling as well. In a time when words of equality are being thrown around, I do think it’s important to look through the underlying issues and not get ahead of ourselves. For one minority group to gain a personal victory at the expensive of another’s, it seems as though maybe things are more sugar-coated than we had previously thought.
I see that if you are for equality and supporting a minority group, it should be so across the board. Honestly, I still don’t understand why people don’t want to allow gay marriages. Why do they care so much? If a gay couple wants to live together, what’s the difference if they are married? It’s not going to affect the anti-gay person any different. I understand that a lot of people’s viewpoint is impacted by religion, but I think that this is absurd. I went to catholic school, but disagreed with many things I was taught. If two people are in love, then wouldn’t God want them to be together, to be happy? If heterosexual people have that right, then in the land of the free where we take so much pride on that and equality and such, homosexuals should have the same right. People have been prosecuted and discriminated against forever, and most people believe that this should not be, but only for certain circumstances. Why should it not be equal for every situation? If they are fighting for equality, it should be for everyone, not just whatever group they belong to. We all should have the right to marriage, whether we are getting married to someone of the same gender or not.
I was really disappointed to hear that gay marriage had been banned after the election. What a little cloud over the excitement of Barack Obama being elected, for me at least. I was actually a little surprised when I found out. I felt like there was such a push from all kinds of people (especially celebrities) to get Proposition 8 turned down. Maybe religion still has its strong roots at America's core. But minorities? Really?.. How do you set the stage for this monumental change in the White House, yet deny people, who are also a minority, their chance -- that same liberation that you felt, why can't they have that too? I just don't understand. And what makes me even more sad is the fact that this just puts another roadblock up for gay people to fight -- another few years tagged on to their seemingly endless struggle. Are we not that point in history where its ok to accept something different. After old white men running our country for decades upon decades, we now have a fresh young black man to do the job and we put our faith in him to do it. Gay people aren't asking for that much here -- simply not to be denied their "pursuit of happiness." I hope within the next few years there's progress made for gay rights. & even more so I hope that soon gay couples will be able to marry just like everyone else.
I think it is important to bring up the fact that every generation will have to deal with some form of its own bigotry. Hopefully the next generation will not take as long to over come their challenge of bigotry against the LGBT community since it took so long to overcome differences in skin color. It is so interesting to me that people who are strongly against the LGBT community are minorities who were, not so long ago, not treated as one hundred percent equal. It is just like Sam told us in class. Many of the people, who are strongly opposed to immigrants coming to America from Mexico, are Mexicans or other people that have legally come to this country. So many people are willing to fight for their own rights, and not willing to fight for the rights of others. Why is it that once we get somewhere, we don’t want anyone else to be able to get where were are? Why is there no compassion for the ones that are left behind and still treated unequally? As long as you have rights, you don’t care who doesn’t. Just in the way people can’t help what skin color they are born with, people can’t help who they fall in love with and to penalize someone for that is wrong.
I would like to understand why many people find homosexuality so wrong. I feel that everyone always wants to find their one true love. We don’t say we want to find one true love of the opposite sex. I don’t see why loving a person of the same sex is wrong. Just because one religion says it is wrong does not necessarily make it wrong for the thousands of other people who worship differently. I wish I knew why homosexuality even became an issue in politics because I think that if it was never brought up no one would even think twice about it. I remember seeing my first gay couple on the street one day and not even thinking about it. I feel that our society tries to say it’s such a big deal but if no one ever said anything, it really wouldn’t matter if you love a person of the same or opposite sex. Plus, who are other people to judge what person you fall in love with. It’s not anyone’s business to dwell into my personal relationships and try to control them. Personally, I think that the politicians should try to focus more on how to fix our economy than trying to tell the citizens about whom they can love and who they can’t.
I would have to agree with what many people have previously written on the blog. I was extremely excited by what America achieved during the election, that is, until I found out the next morning about Proposition 8. I find it a shame that while we were making a step forward with race relations, we take a giant leap back for LGBT relations. I believe that if a man loves a man, then he should be able to get married to him. How does it affect my daily life if they are married? They are in love; shouldn’t they be allowed the same rights that I am if I love a man? Back when there was segregation, many people thought they were doing what was right; however, now it is looked upon as a shameful chapter. As the youth become more and more open to change, I agree with Sam when he said that this election may be looked on as the “shameful chapter” for our generation. Who knows what the world will be like in 20-30 years, but if I have to take a guess, LGBT issues will no longer be issues. So while people are saying that we are making great progress towards change in the country, I would have to argue with them and say that they are wrong.
I too, found something unsettling with the “progress” made in this election. I realize that although America decided to elect a black president (although we must keep in mind he is still half white,) many would agree we still took a step backwards so to speak in the area of LGBT relations. I don’t understand how a state such as California that I previously believed to be fairly progressive and liberal, chose to pass a ban on gay marriage. This is the same state that chose to give a former body builder and movie star from Austria the chance to be governor, but somehow they found a problem of letting two people who are the same sex live a happy life together? And if we are going to play the whole “lesser of two evils” game, why not pick on the modification to the abortion law that was overturned here? Instead, California chose to not make the rules for abortion stricter, and said “no” to making it necessary to have parental notification and a 48 hour waiting period for a minor to have an abortion. While many consider abortion to be killing innocent lives, somehow California is ok with this, but definitely not with two people who don’t want to murder, just loving each other happily ever after. California and American citizens who feel this way: this seems highly hypocritical.
When Obama won the election, I felt very good about the future of our country. I just had this feeling that things were going to be alright. Then it seemed that my smile faded as I read in the papers and online that Proposition 8 overturned gay marriage in California. I do think there is irony that black and Hispanics had a lot to do with the ban on gay marriage. The blog says 70 percent and that did make me a little upset.
There is a constant struggle in my head to defend equality for homosexuals because when I see that a ban has been put on gay marriage and that most states do not even recognize it, I start to feel like a second class citizen. It makes me feel like that “God” or whatever created me fucked up on the assembly line and that was that. I feel I need to get angry and say “that’s wrong, that’s fucked up; homosexuals don’t deserve that.”
Then I see the people around me who are not for gay marriage or are homophobic and for a second, I see myself in them. I see that we are a lot more alike than we aren’t alike. The minorities that voted against same-sex marriage, that doesn’t make sense to me but I can also understand it. I hope that one day people will judge me for the things I do, not the person I am.
When Obama won the election, I felt very good about the future of our country. I just had this feeling that things were going to be alright. Then it seemed that my smile faded as I read in the papers and online that Proposition 8 overturned gay marriage in California. I do think there is irony that black and Hispanics had a lot to do with the ban on gay marriage. The blog says 70 percent and that did make me a little upset. I don’t really know how to feel about that because it is a little confusing for a minority to take away rights towards another minority
There is a constant struggle in my head to defend equality for homosexuals because when I see that a ban has been put on gay marriage and that most states do not even recognize it, I start to feel like a second class citizen. It makes me feel like “God” or whatever created a defective model on the assembly line. I feel I need to get angry and say “that’s wrong, that’s fucked up; homosexuals don’t deserve that.”
Then I see the people around me who are not for gay marriage or are homophobic and for a second, I see myself in them. I see that we are a lot more alike than we aren’t alike. The minorities that voted against same-sex marriage, that doesn’t make sense to me. I hope that one day people will judge me for the things I do, not the person I am. How stupid is all this? We have SO MUCH going on in the world and we care about GAY MARRIAGE? Did anyone read about how much money the Mormon and Christian churches raised to ban same-sex marriage? Think about where that money could have gone. For those who cannot recognize gay marriage, that’s why you will marry someone of the opposite sex. You are wasting your time. It is only inevitable for the world to evolve to accept those who truly deserve it.
I find it hilarious that we now have a black president and everyone is claiming that this is now a major step for the country in terms of tolerance; however the people of California reject the proposition for gay marriage. As Sam stated the large majority of the blacks and Latinos that voted for Obama voted against gay marriage. They voted solely on their religions which I find to be very in tolerate of most things. Maybe since I am an Atheist I just do not understand their position but it still does not make me think what they did was not wrong. I think anyone that wants to get married should be able to if they want. Marriage is a sacred institution in my mind but not the way religions claim it to be, in fact I think they are perverting the whole institution of marriage. With over half of marriages ending in divorce anymore how can marriage be a sacred institution among religions. They seem so blasé about the whole thing. Within the gay community you most likely see people that have the same partner for years and truly do love each other and would last in marriage longer than straights. It is a travesty that we cannot allow people who love one another to marry but it is perfectly fine to allow people to marry who later become adulators or disinterested with their spouse and want a new and better model. What ever happened to death till we part, more like till I get tired of you and move onto my 5th wife or husband?
The election of Barack Obama as our next president is a very big deal. No one failed to notice this on Election Day, and in the days following it. As far as race relations go, it is a huge step forward. If the founding fathers could see us now…what would they say? I don’t know how many of them owned slaves but I’m sure there were a few, and if they didn’t, they most likely supported it and/or knew people who did. A black person in the White House? They would scoff at the very idea. But look what we did! We elected a man who is mixed race – someone will finally be in the White House who truly represents America.
With all of this great success in terms of race relations, we had major failures in terms of human rights and took two steps backwards on Election Day this year. Giving equality to everyone at once is something that my country just can’t handle, and I would even go so far as to call our country a country of hypocrites. How come people apparently believe so strongly in racial equality, but not many other kinds of equality? What’s the difference? Though I am proud of my country for electing Barack Obama, I am ashamed of my country at these new laws that have been passed. We still have a long way to go.
When Barak Obama got elected president, I was pretty happy and excited. I thought, “Wow, this is a huge step forward in terms of race relations.” Then I read in the paper about the passing of Proposition 8 and immediately felt sad and disappointed. After that, it seems like we still do have a long way to go. I agree with Sam about the irony of this. It is kind of funny how more Blacks and Hispanics were drawn to vote in the election because of the fact that there was a Black candidate. While they were voting in hopes for the first Black president, a majority of them also voted against same sex marriages. You would think they would want to vote in favor of it as opposed to against it because so much is said about their rights being oppressed and here they go, oppressing gay people’s rights. Now they are saying, “It is okay for a Black president to be elected, but not okay for a man to love another man, or a woman to love another woman, and for them to want to get married.” It really angers me a lot. Although California will offer civil unions, Florida and Arizona will not. I personally think this is not good enough. I do not think people should be punished for who they love. In my opinion, homosexuality is not a choice. I agree with Susan when she says that marriage is a personal affair. They aren’t hurting anyone, yet people feel a need to hurt them by denying them rights that they should have and by denying them the opportunity to live a more “normal” life. I also agree with Sam when he says that the next few generations will be a lot more accepting of homosexuality. I already feel that my generation is pretty accepting of it and I hope that because of this, our children and grandchildren will be brought up to have more open minds.
I too think it is quite ironic that after all these years of discrimination and inequality of minorities (aka those different than the normal white person) who seem to be experiencing it most would want the wrath of it brought on others. I think that it is awesome that we have finally elected a mixed president into office and I think that this particular instance shows how far we have come as a nation in terms of race relations. Unfortunately though, hearing that people are still not wanting to grant others who are different the same rights as those thought to be "normal" makes me think that we are only shifting our discrimination to a new party. It's like saying, oh we are all equal in terms of race and ethnicity but if you are LGBT there's no hope for you.
I think that eventually our nation will improve in the area of LGBT and that those people will get what they have been waiting and fighting for. I also can't help but think if we will ever have an American-born Chinese, Korean, or Mexican person elected president of the United State. To me, that would truly be the day that race relations will be achieved. I'm sure any election from this time forth, where not only middle-aged white men are running for presidency, will be a huge step in race relations for our nation. I am excited to see what the future holds in terms of this subject and I can only hope that those who currently are being discriminated against realize that for them to be completely in-touch with their race, they must be totally in-touch will all the differences of others and accept others just as themselves. That will be a big determiner of when we can make the next big step in race relations.
I learned a tremendous amount of things about myself and my life this semester. To start off, I learned how fortunate I am to be living in the United States. After reading Disposable People, I realized that I really have nothing to complain about in any aspect of my life. I think that every person in the United States really does not have the right to complain when there are obviously people much worse off. I had no idea that there were over 27 million people in the world that are enslaved in various parts of the world. Taking into account only my life in the United States, I learned that I am still very fortunate. I had always heard of white privilege, but I never realized the extent to which it permeates our country. I never thought that institutional racism could be so imbedded in different aspects of our country, and I had no idea how it was affecting people of other races. The studies that Sam showed us about white privilege shocked me because they were definitive proof about how racist people can unconsciously be. The video about the twin girls who danced around a swastika was horrifying. I did not actually expect there to be people still around who were that ignorant. I am a lot less tolerant of other peoples’ ignorance because I have acquired this knowledge. I also never realized how much I enjoy engaging in conversations about these topics. I found myself throughout the semester telling my friends about a lot of the facts that I learned in this class. I also did not realize how much people do not even want learn or discuss these topics. It is frustrating for me that some people do not even want to learn the truth about what is going on all around the world. It is this type of stubbornness that is the reason why race relations are not better in our country.
I think if I had not taken the class during this election season, I do not think I would have realized how historic of an election this was. I am really glad that I took this class during the election because I am glad to hear the views about the election from people of color. I think after this class, I am more comfortable discussing race, especially with people of color. I am glad that I developed these skills because I think they will help when I am abroad. I also think that this class kind of prepared me for my study abroad because I think that I am more open to other cultures. I am really glad that I took this class.
While it could be considered that there is a huge amount of irony on Election Day with regards to Proposition 8 getting passed, the bottom line is it did. If something like that gets put on the ballot and people vote on it, the people have spoken. I think the election of Obama will be one the iconic moments in American history. He will be one of the presidents everyone knows, like George Washington, or Abraham Lincoln, as opposed to say, Franklin Pierce. Not to disrespect President Pierce (1853-1857) or the office, but his name doesn’t seem to conjure up as much red, white, and blue patriotic feelings. It seems that Obama’s election is making everyone proud to be an American again, although I hope you never stopped. Anyway back to the issue of Proposition 8. The fact that it was put on the ballot and effectively banned gay marriage in California is what happens when you leave the decisions to the people. They decide. Welcome to America. Correct me if I am wrong, but I believe we had two candidates who both opposed Constitutional Amendments to define marriage, but instead wanted the gay marriage issue left up to the states. They did and California spoke. Also, I do not totally buy into the irony of minorities voting for Obama and then voting against gay marriage. It is their right as voting Americans to vote for whatever they want. They are not sworn into some pact that they have to vote socially liberal based on the fact they voted for Obama. Obama-Biden took this election by advocating change, hope, and blasting President Bush’s policies. Now, what we heard in Soc 119 lecture the other day was that the Bush Administration actually helped the LGBT community during his tenure in office when it came to supporting businesses performing proficiently while also being supporters of LGBT rights. I guess this was lost in the message when he blasted away at Bush’s foreign and economic policy. He ran a brilliant campaign and took the angle to win when our economy continued to suffer. He seemed to have won a mandate for change, but not a mandate to implement and ideology. So while he won the election and the economy seemed to play that pivotal role, the voters spoke. They also spoke when it came to proposition 8. Whether or not agree with the decision, it came down to the voters. For all these people that were so proud to elect Obama, but are now ashamed of America, just go, go somewhere, try taking this issue up with these radical extremists that we are still fighting. Brave people are fighting and dying for these rights. The right to vote being among those. Whether or not you agree with it the people voted. I know the gay marriage debate will continue, and debate and an open discourse will continue to invigorate the democratic process and the masses, but as long as you truly believe in this you need to believe in the results.- Sean Mitchell
In response to “One Notable Irony on Election Day,” I would like to make a response. I found it incredibly interesting that seventy percent of voters in the minority groups that supported Obama also supported gay marriage bans. I can definitely see how that would happen, because everyone I know who is black is religious, usually Christian. I agree with the statement that there is unequal treatment. Minorities seem to feel like they deserve rights, which they do, but what about people in the LGBT community? Do they not deserve to be treated with equality and respect? I think that maybe it’s just that society is taking it one step at a time with the idea of acceptance. Although it seems wrong to me to accept one minority group but not another, it’s just how it is. It’s not against people’s religion to discriminate against people of color, but it is part of people’s religion to discriminate against gays and lesbians. I am not justifying their discrimination, I am simply saying that I’m confused. I don’t understand. Is it not discriminating against people’s religions to say they should accept gay and lesbian people? Aren’t they free to have their beliefs? Then, I think about the fact that maybe it’s not about changing their belief systems and religion, but about raising awareness. I understand where Sam is coming from in this blog, but I just feel like it could cause problems trying to change people’s beliefs.
When reading about how much “change” will happen with the promises’ of Obama it is very hard from me to believe that gay rights have been completely disregarded. It makes me very angry to know that finally after so many struggles with race America can finally say that we (as a majority) are beginning to over come racism, but in the same light completely turn our backs to the change for homosexuals. I do not understand how someone can tell another person that they do not deserve to have the same rights as them just because of who they love. How ridiculous does that sound?! Soon after Obama was elected president many people of color said how their grandparents cried with joy because oh how far us as Americans have come, but what about the gays and lesbians? In just a few short months they have been given rights and then quickly had them taken away. I can not understand how or why anyone should have the right to tell another person who they can and can’t love. This is a very hot topic for me because it drives me crazy how as a nation we can change so much but still remain the same.
When Barack Obama was elected president I was very happy and excited for what was to come. Being the first black president, this election was very important to everyone but especially people of color. Now, it is wonderful that we have a black president but that does not make everything better and equal. I truly find it sad that gay marriages are not supported by seventy percent of black and Hispanic people. Sam said in class that he has very little tolerance for people of color who are homophobic and I completely agree with him. How can a person of color argue for equal rights and equality for their own people and not homosexuals? All people should be treated equally and fair regardless of their race, gender, sex or religion. I just do not understand how minorities cannot support equality for gays. That means people of color are being selfish and only want equal rights for their own people. They do not care about others as long as they get what they want. I personally do not see the issue in gay marriages. I feel if two people love each other they should be able to be married like any other heterosexual couples. Most people disagree with gay marriages because it is seen as a sin in the bible. However, everyone sins and how can someone rank one sin higher than another. Other people shouldn’t judge others because they are committing their own sins they need to worry about. Overall, I am glad we have made a step in history with a black president, but there are still many things that need to be changed.
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