NaBloPoMo Month - "The Right Side of History"

NaBloPoMo Month - "The Right Side of History"
Entry #5 - 11/05/2013

"As president, I have always believed that gay and lesbian Americans should be treated fairly and equally under the law. Over time, I also came to believe that same-sex couples should be able to get married like anyone else. So tonight, Michele and I are overjoyed for all the committed couples in Illinois whose love will now be as legal as ours - and for their friend and family who long wanted nothing more than to see their loves ones treated fairly and equally under the law."

A statement from President Barack Obama that was issued today after the General Assembly of Illinois, passed, narrowly mind you, a gay marriage bill that has cleared the way for the state to become the 15th out of 50 (in case you were keeping count) to legalize same-sex unions!

We've all heard the saying, "It only takes one person to make a difference..." well tonight in Illinois those words have held more truth than ever before. The bill received 61 votes in the House, one more than the bare minimum needed to send the measure back to the Senate - which signed off on the bill...QUICKLY!

The passing of the Marriage Equality Act in the "Land of Lincoln" just one day after U.S. Representative Mike Michaud announced in an op-ed piece to Maine residences and the rest of the world that he was a homosexual.

The heart of this issue...same-sex marriage is about equality for everyone. In a country where we declare "all men to be created equal" only nearly one-third of the states in this country have followed through with that. How long will it take before the rest of the country joins Illinois and the other 14 states on the right side of history!? It's interesting to note that while members of the black caucus came out in support of the bill and deemed It a civil rights issue. While members of the African American Clergy Coalition praised (yes praised) those who voted against the measure by saying, "We will always believe that marriage is between one man and one woman. Yet we will still love the members of the LGBT community." I'm sure the Bishop means well enough...

"Today the Illinois House put our state on the right side of history. Illinois is a place that embraces all people and today, we are an example for the nation," stated Governor Pay Quinn...to which I reply your moved 35 other states...including Oklahoma...it's time to get on the right side of history!