Marriage is a Civil Right.

This is what I really meant to say. : ) In order to determine whether anything rises to the level of a civil right, you have to start by looking how a civil right is defined and who decides whether it meets that definition. The United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights defines a civil right as, "one that derives from the inherent dignity of the human person." Black's Law Dictionary further states that civil rights confer protections that apply equally to everyone. In a free society, the will of the people determine whether something is a civil right and government enforces the protections. In all other societies, its ruler makes and enforces these decisions. Regardless if you live in California, Iowa, or Iran, the civil rights you have in that place are ones that derive from your inherent dignity and apply equally to everyone. Nowhere in the world can these things be said about marriage. Therefore it cannot be a civil right. There are three fundamental reasons why marriage is not a civil right; 1)Every society throughout the world believes in the right to a spiritual or religious marriage, but not all believe in government-sanctioned marriage; and even fewer societies believe that government-sanctioned marriage applies to all of its citizens. 2)Historically, civil marriage evolved as a way to insure that men could produce offspring. While this was a right conferred upon men, it was hardly civil. 3)Societies confer certain rights to their citizens that do not necessarily rise to civil rights. First, communities define marriage in different ways. In some parts of the world, marriages can only be performed by spiritual or religious leaders. Some cultures do not place age restrictions, others, such as here in the U.S. allow children to marry with parental consent. And even within cultures, people cannot agree upon whether two consenting adults who love each other should be allowed to marry – that is to say, if those two people happen to share the same gender. As I stated earlier, civil rights derive from the inherent dignity of the human person. The right to remain free from bodily harm, for example, is universally cited as an example of this notion. In other words, it's one that we can all agree upon. Just because some people want marriage to be a civil right doesn't mean that it is one. If that were true, not having to work during the Super Bowl would be a civil right too. Secondly, marriage as an institution did not derive from anything inherent to our being. It started as a way to insure that men would be able to produce offspring. In some societies this still occurs. In Afghanistan, for example, women are still routinely forced into arranged marriages and required to produce offspring for their husbands or else they face criminal penalties. For these women, marriage is a mandated civil service, not a right. And while this may seem horrible to us, the truth is that there may be someone in this room who will one day be forced into a marriage. The right to remain free from slavery may be something we take for granted, but a forced marriage is no different. Finally, there is a difference between rights that citizens have and civil rights. Our right to a free education is one such example. In our country, kids have the opportunity to go from kindergarten to high school without having to pay. This is a right that our society gives to its children, but no one is arguing that this is a civil right, inherent to our dignity as a human person. Marriage is viewed upon in the same way. You see judge, in order for something to be considered a civil right; everyone has to agree that it is, marriage is not yet agreed upon by everyone, so marriage is not a civil right. Thank you.