  
|  | ||||||||||||
Your e-mails: Redefining marriage
  I was born nominally as a male, but... I have lived and worked for years as a woman... What kind of person is a permissible spouse for me? -- Diana, Texas
YOUR E-MAIL ALERTS(CNN) -- The U.S. Senate opened debate Monday on a proposed constitutional amendment that would define marriage as a union between a man and a woman. CNN.com asked its readers how this definition would affect them. Here's what some people said: (Note: Some e-mails have been edited.) To my enormous surprise, living as I do mere miles from the Massachusetts border, my marriage does not appear to have been diminished in any way by the recognition of same-sex marriages there. Clearly, my wife and I must be doing something wrong. I feel like I am being forced into accepting this and I just don't want to. I don't mind people having a partner to who their sexual preference is, but don't force this marriage idea down my throat, because that's what it feels like. Marriage has been defined as a man and woman since our forefathers. Let them have their way of life, as long as marriage between same sex couples does not get shoved down our throats into acceptance. It has affected me before the ball even got rolling. My mother no longer speaks to me, nor I her, because she believes marriage is sacred, and that I, her gay son, should not have the same rights as she does in this country... If marriage is so sacred, why was her second marriage in a courthouse instead of a church? It will help me guide my children as to what marriage is all about -- a union between a man and a woman blessed in the sight of Almighty God. Yes, it affects me and my husband. We were legally married in MA two years ago (exactly two weeks after they legalized same-sex marriage we got married). Not having our marriage recognized by the federal government affects us when we pay taxes, when one of us is in the hospital, when we make our wills, and the list goes on. It would mean that my daughter could lawfully marry. If we believe that marriage is an important social institution, we should make it available to all who want to commit to it. Accepting Britney Spears' "instant marriage-divorces" while rejecting long-term commitments among gay Americans is hypocritical. I would stand up and applaud that definition because that was the way God created it and at the very moment that mankind went against God's plan, the world became a darker, sicker place. It would mean that I could drive to Vegas tonight and marry a complete stranger, but I couldn't marry my girlfriend whom I love and want to be with. Plus, does it make sense for strangers to be married on TV for money but me not to be able to marry for love? Allowing gays to marry does not affect my heterosexual marriage at all. How could it? This whole thing is an example of religious extremists and Republicans joining forces to oppress a minority group in the name of a bible passage. Church and state need to remain separate if democracy in this country is to survive. It would enforce my faith in family values which have severely declined in the last 30 years of my 77-year life span and is the foundation of our lifestyle in this country. Marriage is not political, not religion, not easy and nothing to be played with. I am a gay male, in a 14-year relationship. It would affect me by changing the Constitution to discriminate against me. I can't believe that [Vice President Dick] Cheney is not standing up for his daughter on this! Hopefully, one of the Bush twins never comes out of the closet. I could not say until a court attempted to define what constitutes a woman or a man. I was born nominally as a male, per my birth certificate, but I have lived and worked for years as a woman after surgeries to alter my face and body. In fact, my Texas driver's license lists my sex as female but my birth certificate contradicts that. I am not and have never been married, but if I decide to marry, the question for me is quite real. What kind of person is a permissible spouse for me? I simply do not see how legalized homosexual marriages affect my relationship with my husband. This is a civil rights issue pure and simple. There is no argument against homosexuals marrying other than Biblical ones, which aren't supposed to be the grounds for our federal laws.... The decision would only affect me in its passage in that I would become a citizen of a country ruled by not only a theocracy, but an asinine theocracy. If "traditional marriage" is truly considered to be the cornerstone of our society, then please OUTLAW DIVORCE!!! Marriage has been defined for millennia as one man, one woman. This standard should be retained and honored. It would bring me great joy to see this time-cherished institution protected, as it used to be. It would mean I could never get married outside of Massachusetts, Canada, or the other places in the world where people harmonize together. The Constitution was created to give rights to people, not take them away or prevent people from obtaining them. Gay and lesbians getting married have no impact on the success or validity of straight peoples' marriages. Every individual who finds someone they wish to spend the rest of their life with should be given equal protection, rights and responsibility under the law. The end. Will this affect me? Who cares? My question is why is our government wasting time on this issue? Please tell me Washington is aware of other more important issues that ARE affecting us today. How many times will the GOP pull this dead horse out? If this isn't pandering, I don't know what pandering is. I think that the decision to keep marriage between a woman and a man is a great idea to have passed. The affect it would have on me is that our country is finally making a stand by letting the need of the many outweigh the need of the few. For too long now it has been the other way around. How would this affect me? It would make me cease to vote Republican, once and for all. Discrimination and government intrusion has no part in our Constitution. 
|
| ||||||||||||
| © 2007 Cable News Network. A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved. Terms under which this service is provided to you. Read our privacy guidelines. Contact us. Site Map. |
 |
|
External sites open in new window; not endorsed by CNN.com
Pay service with live and archived video. 
