I was driving back from the chiropractor this afternoon, and listening to the debate on gay marriage that was raging back and forth on that Ottawa bastion of open-mindedness, CFRA Talk Radio. Today, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that the government’s proposed law changing the definition of marriage was, in fact, constitutional. Talk about a non-event. Anyway, CFRA’s callers ranged from the bored soccer-mom in Stittsville who observed that whether or not gay people got married didn’t impact her, to a crusty old codger from Kars challenging the host to explain how same sex couples would “consummate their marriage, because I sure don’t know!”.
The host on the show was interesting. He was fairly dismissive of all those who were against, and fairly tolerant of those who were pro-gay marriage. He himself claimed to be apathetic on the issue, observing that he was neither gay nor married.
His position was a cop-out. That cop-out is a position that many straight people likely feel comfortable adopting.
Straight people should be passionate about this issue. Gay marriage points to the very heart of what kind of a society we want to live in. Is our culture diverse, or homogenous? Are the institutions of our society inclusive, or exclusive? Are those institutions strengthened when they are broadened, or weakened? Are rights guaranteed to every member of society, or only available to a select few?
I know what kind of society I want to live in. Do you?
Further reading, for those interested:
- Here’s a piece I wrote on this issue in September of 2003.
- Here’s the Globe and Mail news coverage of the Court’s decision.
Alec Saunders is the Vice President of Developer Relations for BlackBerry make Research in Motion. This is his personal blog, with his personal viewpoints. Prior to this Alec was the CEO and co-founder of Calliflower — the easiest way to hold a meeting, online, on a conference call, or on the go. A double-decade veteran of product management and marketing, he spent nine years at Microsoft where he helped launch Windows 95, the first two versions of Internet Explorer, the Universal Plug and Play initiative, the push into home markets, opt-in email marketing and what might well go down in history as the very first direct email list ever.
