2003

Letter printed in the Daily Hampshire Gazette

Civil unions do not offer equal protection

To the editor:

The Gazette's Nov. 21 editorial on same sex marriage states that the challenge facing the Legislature is whether it can write legislation that ''reserves the word (marriage) itself for traditional unions, at least for now.'' The editorial does not include an argument against same-sex civil marriage, it simply notes that the prospect ''troubles opponents''.

Respectfully, the mere fact that there is opposition to allowing gay and lesbian couples equal marriage rights is not sufficient reason for the Legislature to oppose it. Basic rights for minority groups are matters of justice, not consensus. Still, it is worth noting that the most recent statewide poll on this issue found that only 38 percent of Massachusetts residents opposed the SJC ruling.

The debate over civil rights for gay and lesbian couples in Massachusetts is far different today than it was before November 18th. Civil unions are now advocated by the governor and others purely as a means of preventing the SJC ruling from effectuating gay marriage.

It is not possible to achieve ''equal protection'' (the title of your editorial) for gay and lesbian families by creating a parallel status, such as civil unions. Marriage cannot be divorced from the rights, privileges, and responsibilities that attend the age-old institution.

If, as the Gazette editorial suggests, we extend benefits to same sex couples, but ''reserve'' marriage itself for heterosexuals, then we will have created a separate institution specifically for gays and lesbians, as a means of preventing them full access to marriage, and to the rights and privileges that married couples enjoy. That's not ''equal protection'', that's second-class citizenship.

The SJC ruling throws down a gauntlet - either stand with gay and lesbian people and affirm their equal status under the law, or stand with those who would assign second-class citizenship on the basis of sexual orientation. This is a time for courage.

Rachel Maddow
Cummington