| ||||||||||||||
ISSUES IN THE NEWS:Gay Marriage? Blame It On Jefferson...
Those were the arguments put forth in the 1760s and 1770s as the American colonies split--divisions that often tore apart families--on the issue of whether a free people could govern themselves in a democracy or should stay with England's king. They were trotted out in the 19th century over the issue of freeing America's slaves. They appeared again in the 20th century over whether women should be allowed to vote and fully participate in society. And these voices were heard again early in my lifetime when the Supreme Court forced public schools to allow white and black children to attend class together. Gay marriage is simply the logical and appropriate extension of the idea that in a constitutionally-limited democratic republic a vital function of government is to protect the rights of minorities. It's called "civil rights." Back in 1787 when the Constitution was being worked out, conservatives pointed out that what John Adams called "the rabble" couldn't be trusted to elect representatives or--even more dangerously--become elected officials. As the father of modern conservative thought, Edmund Burke (1729-1797), famously noted: "The occupation of a hair-dresser, or of a tallowman [candle maker], cannot be a matter of honor to any person--to say nothing of a number of other more servile employments. Such description of men ought not to suffer oppression from the state, but the state suffers oppression if such as they, either individually or collectively, are permitted to rule." American representative democracy was an experiment in 1776 that had never before been tried among "civilized" people. The world watched with curiosity and awe, and during the Civil War figured it was at an end. Even by 1900 there were only a handful of democratic nations in the entire world, and if you define democracy to require the enfranchisement of all people, male and female, black and white, the first true democracy didn't appear until 1920 when we passed the 19th Amendment.
Since that time, liberal democracies have exploded across the world. Of the 191 member nations of the UN in 2003, 140 hold multi-party elections and 81 are considered "fully democratic" by the UN's standards. Through democratically-elected representatives, citizens themselves rule nearly all of North and South America, Europe, Australia and most Pacific Islands, South Africa, and many parts of Asia. This is all startlingly new--an eye blink in the history of what we call civilization. Democracy and civil rights are not "traditional values." The Bible, the Koran, and the Vedas sanction slavery. Women have been the property of men for nearly all of our history. And the idea that one of the most important functions of government is to protect the rights of often-unpopular minorities so shocked Colonial conservatives that many took up arms against the revolutionaries, fled to Canada, or returned to England. George Washington was speaking directly to the issue of civil rights when, in 1790, he said, "As Mankind becomes more liberal, they will be more apt to allow that all those who conduct themselves as worthy members of the community are equally entitled to the protections of civil government. I hope ever to see America among the foremost nations of justice and liberality." The history of America and the history of modern democracies is one of expanding civil rights. First we freed white males from the kings and queens. Then we freed those of us whose skin varied in color. Then we freed women. While none of us are yet completely free, while the ancient kings are returning in the guise of multinational corporations, and while the battles for civil rights continue against conservative forces, it's essential that we recognized that "We, the People" means all of us. It's no coincidence that when the Vermont and Massachusetts Supreme Courts recently looked at constitutions written in the 1700s, inspired by the writings of Jefferson, Madison, and Franklin, they discovered therein the rights of gays and lesbians to civil unions and marriage. Gay marriage is a civil rights issue, plain and simple, and entirely in keeping with the egalitarian vision of this nation's Founders. It's time for us to honestly and frankly face and accept that fact, and act appropriately. Thom Hartmann (thom@thomhartmann.com) is the author of over a dozen books, and the host of a nationally syndicated daily talk show. Copyright Thom Hartmann 2004; permission to republish granted by the author. This story was also published on Friday, February 20, 2004 by CommonDreams.org. Copyright © 2004 The Baltimore Chronicle.
All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Baltimore Chronicle content is expressly prohibited without their prior written consent. This story was published on April 17, 2004. |
Local News & Opinion
05.02 11 Baltimore City Students Win Awards in Md. History Day Competition Ref.: Civic Events Ref.: Arts & Education Events Ref.: Public Service Notices Travel
Books, Films, Arts & Education
Letters
Ref. : Letters to the editor Health Care & Environment
05.15 Horrific Injuries Linked to BP Dispersant Corexit 05.15 'Last Call at the Oasis': Why Time Is Running Out to Save Our Drinking Water 05.14 German Government to Oppose Fracking 05.11 Petition calls on Brazilian president to veto 'catastrophic' forest code 05.11 Bans on School Junk Food Pay Off in California 05.11 When half a million Americans died and nobody noticed 05.10 Game Over for the Climate 05.10 Pollution: the great leveller 05.10 New study: Amish prove raw milk promotes health in children 05.10 Big Agriculture's Big Secrets: 9 Things You Need to Know About the Food You Eat 05.09 Gloria Feldt: The War on Women [video] 05.02 Common Pesticide “Disturbs” the Brains of Children 05.02 Humans Still Evolving as Our Brains Shrink 05.01 Big Changes in Ocean Salinity Intensifying Water Cycle Ref. High health-care costs: It’s all in the pricing - graphic Ref. Dollars for Doctors - How Industry Money Reaches Physicians Ref. 2010 Comparative Price Report Medical and Hospital Fees by Country - Graphics Ref. Health at a Glance 2011 - OECD Indicators Ref. : Why is Healthcare Absurdly Expensive in USA (Part 2) [Graphics] (Part 1 is here) Video Health Care Systems in Less Corrupt Countries “News” Media
05.01 News Corporation has sought to undermine elected governments Daily The Daily Howler Justice Matters
05.16 Is the filibuster unconstitutional? 05.15 MONEY UNLIMITED 05.11 How the Corporate Right Hijacked America's Courts to Enrich the Top 1 Percent 05.03 Supreme Court Favorability Reaches New Low 05.01 Eliot Spitzer’s challenge to DOJ as it investigates Wall Street: ‘Bring some cases’ - video 05.01 Laissez-faire with strip-searches: America's two-faced liberalism US Politics, Policy & Culture
05.16 5 Ways Conservatives are Destroying the Institution of Marriage 05.16 Congress: The TSA Is Wasting Hundreds Of Millions In Taxpayer Dollars 05.16 The Economic Case for Same-Sex Marriage 05.16 If Information Is Power, What Is Lack Of Information? [video] 05.15 IMAGE: It doesn't have to be true, just credible... 05.15 WEDDING BELLS 05.15 Memo to Mitt: Time to Fess Up on Bullying 05.14 “The truth will set you free. But first, it will piss you off.” 05.14 Hedges: How Our Demented Capitalist System Made America Insane 05.11 Why Atheists Have Become a Kick-Ass Movement You Want on Your Side 05.11 Fixable Error, New Insight, and Social Security 05.10 Ballot Access 05.10 Christian Conservatives vs. Sex: The Long War Over Reproductive Freedom 05.03 Out of the Margins, Into the Fray 05.03 Occupy May Day: Voices from the LA protests [video] 05.02 Jon Stewart Assails GOP for Their Hypocrisy on Obama Campaign Bringing Up Bin Laden [video] 05.02 Hamptons Home Prices Rise as Buyers Prefer Luxury Deals 05.02 The Administration Is Scared of Its Own Regulatory Shadow High Crimes?
Economics, Crony Capitalism
05.16 “What Scares Me Isn’t $2 Billion Loss JP Morgan Made, What Scares Me is the Record $19 Billion in Profits” [video] 05.16 Republican Party suckles at the breast of Big Business 05.16 Weisbrot and Krugman are Wrong: Greece cannot pull off an Argentina 05.15 Greek deadlock heightens fears of full European economic crisis 05.14 Why We Regulate 05.11 Indentured Servitude for Seniors: Social Security Garnished for Student Debts 05.11 Breaking Up Four Big Banks 05.11 Wall Street’s immunity 05.11 How Wall Street Killed Financial Reform 05.10 Real Estate 4 Ransom -- locking up the Great American Dream 05.10 Quelle Surprise! Fed Defends Incompetent Bank Management Against Investors 05.10 Europe’s Problems Multiply 05.09 Ryan Shrugs: Overlooked GOP Budget Provision Would Fuel Offshoring With New Tax Incentives 05.09 Top 1% Fills Gov. Scott Walker’s Recall War Chest With $25 Million 05.09 ALEC Affiliated Corporations 05.09 Teachers’ Board Becomes Fifteenth Group To Drop ALEC 05.09 ALEC’s Top Five Anti-Environment ‘Model’ Laws 05.09 Special Rights for ALEC: Three States Exempt Stealth Corporate Lobbying Group From Lobbying Rules 05.09 A web of privilege supports this so-called meritocracy 05.03 How Wall Street Drives Up Gas Prices -- Ripping Us Off and Killing Jobs 05.03 Paul Krugman on How to Fix the Economy - and Why It's Easier Than You Think 05.02 There is an alternative to austerity 05.01 Under Catholic pressure Paul Ryan backs away from Rand, Objectivism 05.01 Tax Me, for F@%&’s Sake! 05.01 Tea Party Congressmen Accept Cash From Bailed-Out Bankers 05.01 Paul Krugman and Ron Paul discuss economics – as it happened 05.01 No alternative to austerity International
05.15 IDF closes Palestinian school to make way for West Bank training zone 05.14 Noam Chomsky on: 05.14 INFOGRAPHIC: Gas Spending Around The World 05.14 Graphic: Products of Slavery 05.14 Israel warned of volatile situation as Palestinian hunger strikers near death 05.14 How Right-Wing Extremists and Islamists Are the Same 05.14 Guatemala's land grab and massacre 05.11 U.S. Military Taught Officers: Use ‘Hiroshima’ Tactics for ‘Total War’ on Islam 05.11 Thousands of British police join anti-austerity protest 05.10 China Investment Corp. Stops Buying Europe Government Debt on Crisis Concern 05.09 Inside Syria's crackdown: 'I found my boys burning in the street' 05.03 “We Did Not Choose This War” and Other Hypocrisies 05.03 Jobless Rate Reaches New High in Euro Zone 05.02 Collapsing Afghanistan & Pakistan Refuse to Cooperate with Obama Photo Op 05.02 Free the torture report 05.01 What Did You Do In The War, Daddy? 05.01 Quebec students ignite the popular imagination 05.01 Occupy Wall Street Plans Global Protests in Resurgence We are a non-profit Internet-only newspaper publication founded in 1973. Your donation is essential to our survival.
You can also mail a check to: Baltimore News Network, Inc. P.O. Box 42581 Baltimore, MD 21284-2581 |
| ||||||||||||