Religion & Law

St. Louis law prof Jeffrey Redding has posted an essay titled Proposition 8 and the Future of American Same-Sex Marriage Activism.  The essay underscores my concern that the exclusion of same-sex couples from the institution of marriage would eventually stop marginalizing same-sex couples and would end up marginalizing marriage itself.  Redding looks to Canada, the U.K., and India as countries where dignity has been "invoked not to amalgamate minorities into a unitary, common family law system but, instead, to provide minorities with legal space in which to implement non-majoritarian visions of family, community, and the good life."  Sounds reasonable, I suppose, but then we learn that it's not simply about creating additional space for alternative institutions; it's also about escaping the oppression of marriage.  Redding asks "whether gay and lesbian political capital could be invested in dignity-enhancing efforts that have a goal other than prying open the mausoleum of majoritarian marriage."  He also criticizes the Connecticut Supreme Court for citing a Catholic Conference amicus brief regarding marital values such as permanency, fidelity, and selflessness.  (The court held that such values apply equally to committed same-sex couples.)  Redding responds:

Here we have a secular court quoting a religious brief that is itself arguing an antiquated vision of marriage which holds heterosexuals hostage every day.  My question: Is it in the best interests of gays and lesbians to get caught up in this mess?

This line of thought is not new to Redding, of course, but it is a helpful reminder of a viable and pressing threat to marriage, whether espoused by gays or straights, libertarians or progressives.  It has become increasingly difficult to persuade Americans (especially young Americans) how the inclusion of committed same-sex couples within marriage threatens marriage.  Reading helps identify the real danger to marriage culture, but the remedy, I would think, requires a more nuanced response than "say no to same-sex marriage."