In nearly a dozen states, voters have chosen to ban gay marriages, many by landslide margins.
As Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Ohio, Utah and Oregon ban hope for same-sex unions, several ETSU students and organizations have opinions on all sides of the issue.
According to Genesis 2:24, marriage is defined as a union between a man and a woman, but in society marriage is often defined by a set of legal documents that declare the love between two people.
ETSU’s Rainbow Alliance President Katy Moore was very disappointed with the outcome of the vote. She and her partner have been together for five years.
“We have probably the healthiest relationship I know, same-sex or otherwise,” she said.
Moore said the vote has a lot to do with the elections and the return of Bush to the “throne.”
“The American people have chosen to re-elect someone who has tried to write discrimination against us into the Constitution for the first time in history,” she said.
While conservatives push for a ban on the reconstruction of the traditional marriage, many supporters find hope in official government documents.
“We’re confident that the Bill of Rights is going to secure the freedom to marry for gay Americans,” said Matt Foreman, executive director of the national Gay and Lesbian Task Force.
Several Christian organizations at ETSU also offered their views on the issue.
“We cannot support the lifestyle, but we do not wish any harm on gay and lesbian people,” said Josh Watson, who serves as the president of the Christian Student Outreach at ETSU.
“I do know some Christians who do not have a problem with civil unions for homosexuals, even if they do not approve of the lifestyle,” he said.
Jim Kirkpatrick, director of the Presbyterian Campus Ministry at ETSU, supports legal same-sex unions.
“I believe that approximately 10 percent of the human species are homosexual not by choice, and for those people I believe there should be a process that allows them to live together with the legal benefits of marriage,” he said.
As many courts give states the right to ban same-sex unions, proponents of same-sex marriage feel they are presenting gay and lesbian couples with a dead end of opportunities. But at the same time, many people remain opposed to same-sex marriage for religious or moral reasons.
Voters in several more states, including Tennessee, will likely see constitutional amendments related to same-sex marriage on the ballot in 2006 or 2008.

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