Let freedom ring
Our national anthem hails the United States as “The Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.” It’s amazing how a lyric written in 1814 still rings so true more than 200 years later.
In a landmark decision, the Supreme Court of the United States last week voted 5-4 that gays have the constitutional right to marry in all 50 states. The decision brought joy and happiness to many, but it also brought outrage from those opposed to the fundamental right for a person to not have their liberties deprived without due process of the law, and to have guaranteed equal protection of the law.
This isn’t the first time that the country has been divided on who has rights and who doesn’t.
Take, for example, the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, ratified in 1865, which finally abolished slavery.
Until 1920, when the 19th Amendment was ratified, women in this country did not have the right to vote.
Before the 1967 Supreme Court case of Loving v. Virginia, those wishing to marry outside of their race in this country couldn’t legally do so.
Who you love doesn’t define you as a person. How you conduct yourself and how you treat others does. It is amazing to think about the rights that we didn’t have not all that long ago while so many are upset about a decision today that will most likely not impact their lives whatsoever.
As we approach Independence Day, let freedom ring. We are blessed to have so many freedoms that those in other countries do not, and the newfound freedom to marry the person you love regardless of their sex is just the beginning.
In America, we have freedom of the press, freedom of speech and freedom of religion. We have the right to bear arms, the right to an unbiased, public trial and the right to be secure in our persons, houses, papers and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures, to name just a few.
We take so many of our basic freedoms for granted, and we need to remember that for all of the freedom we have, brave people died fighting for it, and others still worked so very hard to make the changes go into effect.
So let freedom – and wedding bells – ring.