Critiquing the Editor's Point of View

The battle for the acceptance of gay marriage, same-sex marriage, in America treads on every day resulting in surge of mixed emotions and reactions. The legal issues surrounding same-sex marriage in the United States are complicated by the federal system of government. Gay marriage is currently granted on a state-by-state basis, which includes only 5 of our 50 states. Previously, the federal government never defined marriage. Any marriage that was recognized by the state was also recognized by the federal government, until the DOMA (Defense of Marriage Act) passed 1996. This act states a marriage is explicitly defined as a union of one man and one woman for the purposes of federal law. There is currently a pending challenge in the federal courts against the DOMA act. The argument is that the DOMA act violates the tenth amendment of the Constitution which states, “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserves to the States respectively, or to the people.”

The fight against the acceptance of gay marriage digs far deeper than acts and appeals. There have also been social and religious controversy regarding the subject. The following article is an editorial piece on gay marriage. The author of the article states her opinion of the acceptance of gay marriage in America, primarily focusing the Christian church because of the consistent opposition of the topic by the majority of Christians. Many Christian groups have been vocal and politically active in opposing same-sex marriage laws in the United States. Christians opposed to same-sex marriage have claimed that extending marriage rights to same-sex couples could undercut the conventional purpose of marriage, or would be contrary to God's will. The author Rev. Rebecca Voklkel expresses that she believes that same sex marriage should be welcomed into the church because the opposition of the subject only causes hate and, in turn, can threaten human life—the opposite of what God's word expresses to it's believers. Her creditability regarding the acceptance of gay marriage integrated into Christian beliefs and the church is pretty substantial since she herself is a teacher of God's word. Rev. Voklkel is reaching out to an audience of Christian Americans in hopes that explaining the true meaning of God's word will cause an acceptance of gay marriage therefore, resulting in less hate crimes and even deaths. The author exhibits substantial evidence for the argument that the opposition to gay marriages only creates hate and violence by linking the reader to other stories posted on CNN regarding hate crimes in New York city and the hateful words of republican gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino.  This provides the reader the opportunity to read beyond her opinion, referring to facts and actual events. Furthermore, the author thoroughly expresses and explains the ways that she feels the situation can be improved. In my opinion, she presents a valid opinion on the subject at hand for an overall good cause: the end to hate and violence.