Same Sex Marriage Same sex marriage couples lose government Benefits because its not legally recognized For gays and lesbians.

*Lesbian, gay, and bisexuals deserve the same respect, recognition and protection as opposite .

* Woman's right to independence and self-determination includes the right to define and express her own sexuality and to choose her own life style. Some of the more forms of discrimination against lesbians, employment, education.

Legal Benefits * Lesbian couples are denied all the economic and legal benefits granted to married women, including tax dedications, insurance benefits, inheritance rights. * Same sex couples are not aloud to share social security, family, medical leave, health care, disability, military, and other benefits. * Same Sex couples across the country are denied more than 1,000 federal protection and rights.

* Same sex couples can lose more than 10,000 dollars per year upon retirement due to lack of social security benefits.

This discrimination also affects the children of same sex couples * This discrimination also affects the children of same sex couples. Lesbian and gay parents are unable to assume parenting rights and responsibilities when children are brought into a family through birth, adoption, surrogacy, or other means.

* Coast-Coast rejection of same sex marriage, 11 states approved constitutional/amendments limiting marriage to one man and one woman.

Marriage Licenses * Issues marriage licenses to same-sex couples: Massachusetts, Connecticut, California, Iowa, Vermont, New Hampshire, New York and the District of Columbia.

Facts * When San Francisco legalized gay marriage, 4,037 marriage licenses were issued and 3,995 gay couples were married in the several months before the state intervened and voided the marriages. In a review of the names of couples it was found 57 % were lesbians.

* Discrimination in the military, anti-sodomy laws, electing lesbian and gay candidates to political office, hate crimes legislation, and expanding same-sex partners' rights.

* With an argument this strong on behalf of equal marriage rights, the right wing has had to resort to absurd claims. The charge, repeated over and over again, that allowing lesbian and gay couples to wed will somehow tarnish the institution of marriage makes little sense. When many people hear the phrase "the institution of marriage" they think of unions sanctified by the church. However, the struggle for same-sex marriage is about legal rights—it does not demand that churches perform same-sex marriage ceremonies.

* This right also ignores the fact that many same-sex couples, a large number of them with children, already exist, and will continue to exist regardless of a constitutional amendment. Won't giving these families the rights and benefits they deserve make them stronger.

Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled that gays had equal marriage rights * Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled that gays had equal marriage rights. But opponents are winning the legislative fight. Twenty-seven states have passed constitutional bans on gay marriage, while just 10 have granted rights to homosexual couples.

* some observers consider the exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage to be unfair discrimination while some scholars claim that marriage is essentially heterosexual and the basis for societal structure.

* same-sex marriage through sexuality education and its incorporation into the education curricular is expected to affect children and their development.

* same-sex marriage, education, and parental rights, as well as legal issues that arise from objections of parents on teaching related to same-sex marriage in public schools. parental rights for the control of the education of their children.

* liberals regarding theology of marriage such as same-sex couples in the U.S. The liberals argue that the church must consider same-sex couples to be married because it requires their testimony to the love of Christ and the church.

Origins of marriage living together:" an informal arrangement which may be temporary or permanent. common-law marriage: living together with the intent of creating a permanent union. Legally recognized marriage registered with the government, which brings a full set of benefits and obligations.

Adoptions * As of 2000-DEC-19, Dutch gay and lesbian couples were permitted to marry and adopt children, with the full privileges enjoyed by heterosexual married couples.

* Once same-sex marriage became available in Massachusetts, Canada and multiple states, many people began to look at the topic seriously. Many people, particularly youth and young adults, view marriage as a basic human right for all couples -- same sex and opposite sex.