Whose Freedom is More Important?

Freedom is one of the original factors that separated the United States from the rest of the world. We were the first (modern day) democracy and had more freedom than any other State in the late 1700's and early 1800's. Today, some Americans still take pride in our early successes in the field of gaining  and maintaining freedom, but are we still a nation that can pride itself on its pursuit of freedom?

A 2012 Texas Republican Candidate Platform suggested that it was all about preserving our American freedom. Sounds great right? Wrong. Later in that same document they talk about making it a felony for homosexuals to have consensual sex. They want to preserve your freedom, but only if you aren't doing things that they dislike. Up until 2015 gay marriage wasn't legal throughout the United States until September of 2015. Making it the 17th country to legalize equal marriage. The following is a list of who legalized/ will legalize equal marriage and when:

Netherlands (4/2001)
Belgium (6/2003)
Spain (7/2005)
Canada (2005)
South Africa (11/2006)
Norway (1/2009)
Sweden (5/2009)
Portugal (1/2010)
Iceland (6/2010)
Argentina (7/2010)
New Zealand (4/2013)
Brazil (5/2013)
France (5/2013)
Uruguay (8/2013)
Mexico (6/2015)
Ireland (8/2015)
United States (9/2015)
Finland (3/2017)

So, whose freedom is more important? That of everyone or that of a group of people? Gay/ equal marriage is an expansion of freedom, not a reduction of it.


"Same-Sex Marriage." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 30 Mar. 2016.

Corvino, John. "Same-Sex Marriage Furthers the American Values of Freedom and Equality." Same-Sex Marriage. Ed. Tamara Thompson. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press, 2015. Current Controversies. Rpt. from "The Case for Same-Sex Marriage." Debating Same-Sex Marriage 83 (2012). Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 30 Mar. 2016.