In the blink of an eye it happened.
Even the Queen approved.
Same Sex marriage is to be introduced to the UK next summer. I have to say that I am overjoyed. This is a wonderful step in the fight for equality.
Nothing happened in some ways. Society didn't crumble, the air didn't become harder to breathe. So many people feared that passing same sex marriage would have huge repercussions but what they forgot was love happens and is experienced every day regardless of gender or marital state but it is the legislation that protects couples and their families in our society that holds great importance to the individuals involved.
But
why the need for same sex marriage in a country that already has civil partnerships is a question many will ask.
A civil partnership provides most, but not all, of the rights that come with a civil marriage.
Also "civil partner" sounds somewhat cold and impersonal. We've been raised in a world where "husband" and "wife" are terms we say with pride and love. The importance in changing the restrictions of same sex couples to only having civil partnerships to the ability to have a marriage allows their relationships to be seen as equal to the marriages of heterosexual couples.
Marriages are accepted everywhere but not every country accepts or holds any appropriate legislation protecting a civil partnership and therefore same sex partners have no protection. It restricts their rights should they choose to move abroad to any country without protective legislation for their union.
The legislation surrounding marriage relies heavily on gender as something binary and therefore can be particularly problematic for members of the trans community or intersex individuals. If individuals must ever provide their marital status on official forms they'd have to say they were in a civil partnership rather than a marriage. This forces people to come out where they'd perhaps rather just say that they are married without fully giving away details of their sexuality.
Marriage has been provided to those without religion despite the fact it has often been cited as a religious practice. Civil Partnerships should be encouraged towards those who want to forge their love together without religious connotations. At present it's more seen as something specifically for non-heteronormative couples.
People have been committing themselves to each other since the dawn of time and this will continue regardless of gender or legislation. People will choose to commit themselves lovingly to someone else and there's no shame in that. My hope is that in legalising same sex marriage we can continue to spread tolerance of the LGBTQ community which will then help us to focus on further issues that the community faces and experiences. Civil partnerships aren't as socially acknowledged and accepted as marriages and herein lies the importance: love should be treated equally, regardless of gender. If we're going to have the opportunity to fully commit to someone then our marriages should be equal to that of our peers unless we, the couple at hand, choose otherwise.
