Today

Today, I am embarrassed to live in NC. Today, I am disappointed to find out that so many people would vote to take away the rights of someone else. Today, I can marry my first cousin. We could have children--even though there is a high risk of a child being born with a birth defect. But he can't marry his boyfriend, whom he is in a committed relationship with. Think about that for a moment. Take it all in.

 You see, yesterday, North Carolina voted that "Marriage between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized in this State". This means that not only is gay marriage banned (which it already was), but civil unions will not be recognized in North Carolina at all. 

But they are not the only ones harmed by this amendment. Children of unmarried parents may lose health benefits. Unmarried elderly people may lose health benefits. Domestic violence laws are at risk for unmarried couples. The amendment passed with 61% of voters in favor of it. Which is fine and dandy. The problem is, over 60% of voters had NO CLUE what the amendment was about. They were completely ignorant about what they were voting for--it came down to ignorance and propaganda. The people who were pro-amendment packaged it up all pretty and made unsuspecting people believe that it was all about gay marriage. When it wasn't.

 There are so many angles that I could take and 50 million reasons why I can tell you that it should not have passed. I'm not getting into that. All I will say is that my family taught me to love unconditionally--but I'm having a really difficult time 'loving' those who supported this amendment. Because clearly they don't give the same love in return.

Today, people who voted for the amendment are telling those of us who are upset and hurt to "get over it" and to "move on"...but my family was directly affected. Maybe those people who weren't directly affected should step into the shoes of someone who was hurt by the amendment. Then maybe they'll see why we're so upset. It is going to take some time to heal. 

Take a good look at the couple sitting next to you at a restaurant next time you go out. They're heterosexual. They might even have a child. they could look perfectly normal. Maybe it's an elderly couple. Inside, they could be heartbroken. They could be struggling. They could be wondering what they're going to do now that their rights were taken away from them. They could be wondering why there is so much judgement and hatred in this world.