Fighting for an equal future

Faced with defeats in New York, New Jersey, and Maine, many LGBT activists may comfort themselves with the fact that, if they look at the numbers, it may just be a matter of time until same-sex marriage is uniformly adopted across state lines.  A recent study by Columbia’s own Jeffrey Lax and Justin Phillips demonstrates a nation-wide increase in public support for same-sex marriage since the 1990s. And, perhaps more interestingly, the numbers demonstrate a clear indication that younger Americans are more in favor of same-sex marriage than their older counterparts.  But the question remains—how long are we willing to wait?

Are we willing to wait for the passing of an entire generation to achieve equal rights simply because they do not agree? Why not fight now for the vision of our future that we want? Why not compel our legislators to stand up for our future now?

The Students Advancing Marriage Equality campaign is not prepared to wait. It is important for students to act now, and to push toward the future of our country that we believe in. Marriage is inherently young America’s issue. Americans are, on average, in their mid-twenties when they are first married, and young Americans will be those most affected by any change to the U.S. marital status quo. While up until now, this fight has been about our parents and our professors, it is increasingly becoming the struggle of our friends and our peers.

Many politicians have used the future of our generation as a reason to stop the progressive change that many our age believe in. Saddled by a lagging economy and a terrible job market, it is difficult to persuade politicians to invest in our health care system or our education, despite the fact, that these are good policies for our future. Politicians claim that there are few issues they can effectively deliver on right now. But they can deliver on marriage equality. Marriage equality does not require a paycheck. In fact, studies have shown that it may give states a paycheck. Marriage is so fundamental to our community that it is something that we cannot wait to pass.

State legislatures are the place to take this fight. Courts have been the most effective means of paving a way to marriage equality in the United States, but court decisions have meant lengthy court battles that were often overturned by a state legislature or public referendum. And on ballot initiatives, the marriage equality fights are 0-31. Not a very good record.

State legislatures may offer new hope. New Hampshire became the first state in 2008 to adopt same-sex marriage through the legislature, opening this path to other activists. But when New York and New Jersey had widely publicized legislative debates on same-sex marriage, both ended in defeat. While we did not achieve equality in New York and New Jersey, these votes provide us the opportunity to start to hold politicians accountable on marriage equality.

And now is the time that we must hold our politicians accountable about marriage equality. It is about the rights of our classmates, about the community that we want in our state. This is why we must say to our legislators that it is time for them to stand up for the future vision of American marriage. 

Standing up for marriage equality also notifies our elected officials that young Americans are paying attention. State legislators may think that they are going to get passed over due to the drama of the national political discourse, but it is in our state governments that many critical decisions are made—decisions that directly impact us much more than many national debates do. By stepping forward here, we are saying we care about marriage equality, but we are also saying that we expect legislators to care about young Americans, to stay true to their campaign promises, and to govern with tomorrow in mind.

Too often the vision of our future is neglected in favor of the politicians’ vision of next November. But governing a state, or a country, is about more than the next election. Can you remember the last historical figure that inspired you based on his electoral capabilities? My inspirations are people who worked for the future of their country.

So yes, we are fighting for equal rights in New York State. And yes, we are fighting for the future of American marriage and community. But we are also fighting to move toward a vision of politicians who govern for the future—not for their next election.

The author is a Barnard College senior majoring in political science. She is the president of the Columbia University College Democrats.