God, I loathe this country sometimes. It’s beyond me how a government and its society can deny the rights of roughly a tenth of the population while the remaining 90 percent can live and function in a free and equal society.

But the world is changing.

Last week, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled in a close 4-3 vote that gay and lesbian couples have the right to marry under the current state constitution. Since then, I’ve witnessed a backlash not seen since the AIDS epidemic came to a head 10 years ago. Critics of the decision have denounced society for abandoning all moral value and progressing to the point of sacrilege. Some have reverted back to the original gay debate, claiming that those who are gay have made that decision themselves and should live with the consequences.

However, if equality for all means granting marriage rights to homosexuals, I fail to see any moral degradation. My main argument on this topic is simple: If gay marriage does not in any way affect a hetero-couple’s life or marriage, they shouldn’t care that this same equality be extended to everyone else. This isn’t an isolationist idea we’re not talking about ignoring global hunger because we are not, in fact, starving. We’re not choosing to stay neutral in a world war. I merely cannot understand why granting gay couples the same freedoms their straight counterparts have is the topic of debate it is today.

Alternatives such as civil unions are nothing more than concessions intent on maintaining gay oppression. While Vermont’s civil union was in fact a milestone a couple of years ago, the basic principle of the law is meant to show that a gay relationship is not as significant or equal to a marriage between a man and a woman. A couple in a civil union does not have the same financial or material rights as a married couple. Worse yet, several states, including my home state of New York, refuse to acknowledge gay civil unions performed in other states. Civil unions are not the answer as they are not equal to marriage.

I can accept, though, people’s dissenting opinions on homosexuality. Not only is it easy to fear or reject the unknown, but when accepted gay dogma includes ‘Just Jack’ from ‘Will ‘ Grace’ and The Fab Five, it’s easy for the gay community to be caricatured for entertainment purposes. Those shows are good in that they at least present the topic of homosexuality to the public, but because their purpose is to entertain, it’s understandably difficult for society to take the institution of a gay relationship seriously TV is many people’s prime exposure to it.

The truth is that homosexuality is very real and is just as viable a lifestyle as heterosexuality. Sexuality has nothing to do with how much you can love or the quality of that love only the person you love. Furthermore, sexuality has no bearing on morality, ethics or spirituality. In fact, I want to be wed so I can be married before the eyes of God and receive His blessing in the love I’ll have with my eventual husband.

This brings me to the real challenge in granting gays the right to wed. While the government can legalize gay marriage, they cannot impose it on the private institutions of organized religion. Fortunately, many reform sects of Judeo-Christian religions accept homosexuals and perform gay weddings.

We then come to the discussion of choice. It may just be me, but if homosexuality were a choice, it’d seem rather masochistic of me to make that decision for myself knowing that much of society is going to be unwilling to understand and accept my lifestyle. But even if my sexuality was a choice, I should not have to merely accept the consequences of my decision, as I deserve the same rights as every other citizen in this country.

There was a point in my life where I thought it’d be easier for me to be straight I wouldn’t have had to endure the taunts throughout high school. I wouldn’t have to worry about being accepted in the work force.

I am gay, though. Through years of growth, development and maturity, I’ve become not only comfortable with my sexuality, but I’ve become comfortable with myself. I don’t wish that I were straight anymore, because that would be denying a part of myself.

I’m also a man and an American, and I demand the same rights and equalities as every other citizen in this country. I find it incredible that our government can demand that I fight for my country in a time of war, but it refuses to grant me the simple, inalienable rights that my hetero counterparts have.

This debate does not need to be about gay marriage at all. Rather, this can be a discussion about accepting the gay community as a genuine, serious group this acceptance can and should come despite a lack of understanding of this lifestyle. If all men (and women) are created equal, I challenge the government and society to prove it and allow, once and for all, freedom for everybody.

Brad Jones, a junior in the College of Communication, is a weekly columnist for The Daily Free Press. His email address is [email protected].