I had today’s post all written out. It was going to be a promo post for the new release, The Eye and the Arm. Then I remembered the date. So for those who’ve not seen the information about the new release, here’s a link to the book on my website:

The Eye and the Arm:

Having plugged the new book, let’s move on to something more important—yes, believe it or not there are things more important to an author than selling books. Today the U.S. Supreme Court is going to hear arguments on marriage equality. Unlike earlier cases that overturned DOMA (The Defense of Marriage Act) or invalidated Proposition 8 in California, this one is a bit trickier to handicap the outcome. I still think it’s going to result in this country joining the ranks of civilized nations, but it’s not a done deal.

(Here’s the view from my office. The dome to the right with the scaffolding, is the U.S. Capitol. The dome to the left, is the Library of Congress—you know, where you get your copyrights— and in between is where the Supreme Court is. Its doesn’t have a dome nor is it tall enough to see, but trust me, that’s where it is. 🙂 )

Let me start with an ultra-condensed civics lesson. The U.S. Constitution states that marriage is the purview of the states. To non-Americans that might seem odd, because people think of the US as one homogenous entity, but it’s really not. The states control a huge amount of our daily lives, from criminal laws, insurance regulations, taxes, inheritance, education and yes—marriage. Ever wonder why there are all those stories of people going to Vegas to elope or get divorced? The state of Nevada didn’t have a waiting period to get married. Maryland, the state where I reside, requires you to wait for three days after you get your license to get married.

When opponents of DOMA took the case up on appeal, they had a strong argument. The federal government couldn’t pass a law that overturns a constitutional power given to the states. In the seminal case, a couple duly married under the laws of New York, demanded they be given the same benefits as every other couple. Another tenant of our constitution is equal protection—that is, every person is treated the same regardless of race, creed, color, religion etc. The government couldn’t pick and choose which marriages to give martial benefits to, so the law failed.

But what about this new challenge? Basically, federal courts around the country have been invalidating state bans on same sex marriage. They’ve said the Fourteenth Amendment granting equal protection requires the states act equally when giving marriage benefits. The states that opposed marriage equality tried to argue it’s a state’s right to define marriage, which is true. The really tricky part for opponents of marriage equality is a little known clause often referred to as full faith and credit. If a marriage in Maryland wasn’t recognized in Pennsylvania that would make for a bugger of a time if people wanted to move. They’d need to get marriage in the new state—immediately. To avoid that issue, the Constitution requires states give full faith and credit to the laws of other states. If you’re married in Maine, it’s recognized in Vermont. If you get divorced in Michigan, you’re divorced everywhere. So if someone goes to a state that has marriage equality, how can it not be recognized everywhere? That’s just one argument, but you can see why this is such an uphill battle for the opponents.

Okay, history lesson over. Why does it matter? Once upon a time, many states used to bar interracial marriages. (Okay, so I’ve slipped on my teacher hat again, humor me please.) Those laws were over turned in the Sixties in a case call Loving v. Virginia. That decision said, interracial marriages are every bit as real and the couples in those marriages count every bit as much as every other marriage. Did it single handedly change racial issues? No, but it took one more leg away from the haters. The states had to recognize these couple as legitimate and give them all the benefits they gave every other married couple.

Interesting tidbit, the privilege of marriage comes with a cost—higher taxes. Yep, by getting married it cost us a fair bit of money when we filed our taxes. Funny how the anti-equality crowd never mentions that. But I digress.

The importance of recognition is so obvious. It’s part of our daily lives. Authors write to have people read there work and we thrive on feedback (generally we prefer positive feedback, but all comments are welcome.) When you do a good job at work, a good employer will recognize your accomplishments. When you show up at the hospital to see your spouse, you expect to have your right to see your significant other recognized.

What’s so frustrating is the silly arguments that are cropping up. We’re a threat to the very institution of marriage. Um… wait. I want to get marriage, so I’m threat to the thing I want because why? Evidently it has something to do with marrying farm animals, our children or Ferris Wheels. (Okay, I made that last point up, but it’s no less stupid.) Boil it all down and what you get is, they’re opposed to our marriage, because they don’t like LGBT people. Period. Any right that recognizes us as real people just like them must be opposed.

But wait, according to Senator Ted Cruz, now I’m intolerant for not agreeing to respect their religious views. Somehow, if I don’t allow one group of people to impose their religious beliefs on all of us, I’m intolerant. Hmm…that’s…stupid? What the opposition really wants is a legal way to discriminate against us. If they have to bake us a cake, serve us pizza or rent us a hotel room, they can’t wield that one bit of power they have over people they don’t ‘agree with.’ (That’s code for people not like them that they don’t like.)

Recognition by the state means people can’t openly discriminate and that makes it harder to oppose acceptance by the majority of people. We know that you can’t legislate away hate, or discrimination. Fifty years after the civil rights movement, no one is saying racism doesn’t exist. But it has helped improve the lives of countless minorities. And with each passing generation, it gets less and less acceptable to discriminate based on race.

It’s only one step among many, but each step is important. I suspect I won’t sway many people who read this, because I’m truly preaching to the choir, but even if you never want to take advantage of marriage equality, the fact it’s there and available, is still a big step toward being free to love the person you want.

Recognition. It’s what’s on the agenda today. Let’s hope the Supreme Court gives us the outcome we deserve.

Andrew Q. Gordon wrote his first story back when yellow legal pads, ball point pens were common and a Smith Corona correctable typewriter was considered high tech. Adapting with technology, he now takes his MacBook somewhere quiet when he wants to write.

He currently lives in the Washington, D.C. area with his partner of twenty years, their young daughter and dog. In addition to dodging some very self-important D.C. ‘insiders’, Andrew uses his commute to catch up on his reading. When not working or writing, he enjoys soccer, high fantasy, baseball and seeing how much coffee he can drink in a day.

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Or just email him: andrewqgordon@gmail.com