Dear Future President of the United States,

Imagine a world where everyone could marry whomever they want and not be questioned. Imagine a world where everybody was accepted for who they are. Your policies must defend people’s rights in order to give everyone marriage benefits, respect the constitution and show what the majority of our country believes.

Same sex marriage provides lesbian and gay couples the benefits of marriage. Before Congress made same sex marriage legal in every state, lesbian and gay couples could only live together in many states. When couples just live together they are not legally married, therefore, they are not given marriage benefits including cheaper taxes and insurance, applying for joint adoption, and being able to visit your spouse in the hospital intensive care unit. “According to a General Accounting Office ...Benefits only available to married couples include hospital visitation during an illness, the option of filing a joint tax return to reduce a tax burden...and being able to adopt a child.” ( Lee Badgett) Same sex couples have an equal amount of love and dedication as a heterosexual couple, so they should have the same benefits.

Our Constitution provides people with the freedom of religion. Many people are opposed to same sex marriage because it is against their religion. This should not be a reason to ban gay marriage, because everyone has a right to believe whatever they want in the United States. “The bill purports to address conflicts between same-sex marriage and religious liberty and declares the importance of preventing government interference with the free exercise of religious beliefs and moral convictions about marriage.” (News Week) The fourteenth amendment allows all US citizens the ability to get married and have all the benefits of marriage, so if the partners in a same sex couple are US citizens, they have a Constitutional right to get married. “Thus, it guaranteed everyone—no matter the color of their skin—the right to “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. (Prince) Not permitting same sex marriage defies the inalienable rights in the Constitution.

As the President of a democracy, your decisions should show what the majority of the country believes. Almost sixty percent of the country agrees that everyone should have the right to get married, no matter what. “Public support for allowing gays and lesbians to marry legally continues its rapid rise: A 57% majority of Americans now favor allowing same-sex marriage”. (Maniam) Lesbian and gay couples are being supported more and more by today's youth. Being different has become the new normal, and you would not be representing what most of the country believes by outlawing same sex marriage.

Being a part of the United States gives equal rights for all people. Taking away marriage rights for lesbian and gay couples would be taking away a right that is guaranteed. It would be taking away a thousand marriage benefits, defying what our Constitution states, and going against what the majority of the country believes. Marriage should be available and legal to anyone in our country.

Sincerely,

Delaney Estes

Works cited:

M.V. Lee Badgett, PhD, Director of the Center for Public Policy and Administration at the University. "Gay Marriage - ProCon.org." ProConorg Headlines. N.p., 5 Mar. 2016. Web. 04 Nov. 2016

Maniam, Shiva. "Support for Same-Sex Marriage at Record High, but Key Segments Remain Opposed." Pew Research Center for the People and the Press RSS. N.p., 08 June 2015. Web. 04 Nov. 2016

Prince, S.J. "What Does the 14th Amendment Say About Gay Marriage?" Heavycom. N.p., 26 June 2015. Web. 04 Nov. 2016

Olson, Walter. "Gay Marriage and Religious Rights: Say Nada to FADA." Newsweek. N.p., 18 Apr. 2016. Web. 04 Nov. 2016.

.