Politics of Same Sex Marriage

1. Politics of Same Sex Marriage Gary M. Segura PS: Political Science and Politics April 2005; 38, 2.

2. Same Sex Marriage and 2004 Election • Did Kerry Lose Because of Same Sex Amendments? • Bush was reelected and 11 states passed amendments banning same sex marriage.

3. Analysis • Greg Lewis: • Same sex marriage may have had an influence, but it was less than most observers claimed. • Sunshine Hillygus and Todd Sheilds: • Same sex marriage “played no role among independents in battleground states, and even in states where the issue was on the ballot.” • …

4. Evolving Message • Opposition to Same Sex Marriage • Opposition to Same Sex Marriage initially centered on two assertions: • 1) Homosexuality is Morally Inferior • 2) Homosexual unions, being non-procreative are inferior • Frederick Liu and Stephen Macedo • The opposition has shifted to second claim and away from “overt hostility to gays.” Now the focus is on the “discussion of children and preservation of marriage.” • …

5. Marriage and Procreation • Critique of Non-Procreative Marriage: • The argument is that same sex marriage will undermine heterosexual unions by decoupling marriage from procreation. • This claim has two parts: • 1) Natural law theorists argue that family is the central unit in society and that marriage is thus linked to procreation. • 2) Removing children from marriage will undo marriages. It will weaken heterosexual adults interest in the institution.