Song Analysis Of All You Need Is Love By Anna Sward
All You Need Is Love
Anna Sward
HNRS 1015
Nan Janecke
November 12, 2013
All You Need Is Love
All You Need Is Love, a famous song written by the legendary Beatles. The lyrics imply that one can do anything if they have love. Sadly, that is not true in the United States. Love is not enough for same-sex couples, but it should be. America is supposed to be the land of the free, a melting pot, and the place where people go to follow their dreams; however, it has succumbed to racism, sexism and homophobia. The LGBT community began to fight back after the Stonewall Riots and are still fighting for the same freedoms heterosexuals currently hold. These freedoms include the right to marry and marriage provides …show more content…
Gay marriage needs to be legalized in all states because the purpose of marriage is love, legalizing gay marriage will not harm heterosexual marriages or the current “family values”, and marriage is a basic civil right.
The view on gay marriage has varied over the last one hundred years. According to the PBS film Stonewall Uprising, in all states besides Illinois, homosexual acts were illegal in 1969. Dr. Socarides, a guest in the film says, “Homosexuality is in fact a mental illness which has reached epidemiological proportions” (Davis, 2011). This was said in the 1960’s just before the Stonewall Riots. Back then, the costs for being gay were extreme, and punishments included sterilization, castration, lobotomies and even shock therapy. There was one institution in California named Atascadero, where the medical extremes were practiced. At Atascadero, they used medical experimentation that included “administering, to gay people, a drug that simulated the experience of drowning; in other words, a pharmacological example of waterboarding” (Davis, 2011). They punished gays, lesbians, bisexuals and trans-genders for something they could not control. A riot member named Doric Wilson reported that many who …show more content…
Only sixteen states have legalized gay marriage; moreover, there are still thirty-four states left. The real question is what is keeping people from voting for same-marriage? There are a variety of reasons opponents argue same-sex marriage should be illegal. Their main argument involves the traditional definition of marriage. For generations the definition of marriage has been “a union of man and woman, uniquely involving the procreation and rearing of children with a family” (ProCon.org, 2013). This is supported by religious texts such as the Bible, but there are many arguments as to why the above definition in invalid. To begin, it is also stated in the Bible that women are property of men. It is the twenty-first century and there are equal rights for women, many women participate in the workforce and it is no longer acceptable to suggest that a woman’s place is at home. Supporters are in agreement with Sylvia Law when she stated, “any effort by the state to hardwire sex differences into the concept of marriage perpetuates traditional sex-based stereotypes of man-as-breadwinner and woman-as-housekeeper” (Eskridge, 1993). Everyday an increasing number of Americans become more open-minded and accepting of others, so why can people not be accepting of homosexuals. If people of religion can disregard one statement, why can they not disregard another? Ted Olsen, former US
Anna Sward
HNRS 1015
Nan Janecke
November 12, 2013
All You Need Is Love
All You Need Is Love, a famous song written by the legendary Beatles. The lyrics imply that one can do anything if they have love. Sadly, that is not true in the United States. Love is not enough for same-sex couples, but it should be. America is supposed to be the land of the free, a melting pot, and the place where people go to follow their dreams; however, it has succumbed to racism, sexism and homophobia. The LGBT community began to fight back after the Stonewall Riots and are still fighting for the same freedoms heterosexuals currently hold. These freedoms include the right to marry and marriage provides …show more content…
Gay marriage needs to be legalized in all states because the purpose of marriage is love, legalizing gay marriage will not harm heterosexual marriages or the current “family values”, and marriage is a basic civil right.
The view on gay marriage has varied over the last one hundred years. According to the PBS film Stonewall Uprising, in all states besides Illinois, homosexual acts were illegal in 1969. Dr. Socarides, a guest in the film says, “Homosexuality is in fact a mental illness which has reached epidemiological proportions” (Davis, 2011). This was said in the 1960’s just before the Stonewall Riots. Back then, the costs for being gay were extreme, and punishments included sterilization, castration, lobotomies and even shock therapy. There was one institution in California named Atascadero, where the medical extremes were practiced. At Atascadero, they used medical experimentation that included “administering, to gay people, a drug that simulated the experience of drowning; in other words, a pharmacological example of waterboarding” (Davis, 2011). They punished gays, lesbians, bisexuals and trans-genders for something they could not control. A riot member named Doric Wilson reported that many who …show more content…
Only sixteen states have legalized gay marriage; moreover, there are still thirty-four states left. The real question is what is keeping people from voting for same-marriage? There are a variety of reasons opponents argue same-sex marriage should be illegal. Their main argument involves the traditional definition of marriage. For generations the definition of marriage has been “a union of man and woman, uniquely involving the procreation and rearing of children with a family” (ProCon.org, 2013). This is supported by religious texts such as the Bible, but there are many arguments as to why the above definition in invalid. To begin, it is also stated in the Bible that women are property of men. It is the twenty-first century and there are equal rights for women, many women participate in the workforce and it is no longer acceptable to suggest that a woman’s place is at home. Supporters are in agreement with Sylvia Law when she stated, “any effort by the state to hardwire sex differences into the concept of marriage perpetuates traditional sex-based stereotypes of man-as-breadwinner and woman-as-housekeeper” (Eskridge, 1993). Everyday an increasing number of Americans become more open-minded and accepting of others, so why can people not be accepting of homosexuals. If people of religion can disregard one statement, why can they not disregard another? Ted Olsen, former US