Why do homosexuals want to get married

This is what a year-old black gay activist in Los Angeles told me of his views on same-sex marriage. We know that generally older Australians are less supportive of same-sex marriage. In , I interviewed a small international sample of men as part of my research on sexuality and ageing.

Most of the men over 50 were dubious, if not opposed, to gay marriage, while most of those under 30 were supportive. While these results may not apply directly to Australia in , they are indicative of a generational divide between young and old gay men.

These older men have largely remained silent in the current same-sex marriage debate. It is vital that we listen to their perspectives, because older gay men are an already marginalised group, experiencing greater financial and social insecurity than younger men.

We must ensure that same-sex marriage should it be legalised does not further sideline their experiences. One aspect of same-sex marriage that could confuse older gay men, and possibly also lesbians, is that it is at odds with beliefs they might have formed when they were young.

In the early s, feminists and gay liberationists asked their followers to think about how to liberate their own needs from the constraints of family, and experiment with alternative forms of intimate relationships, very different to the idea of nuclear family: heterosexual married parents with biological children. In the early days, these relationships were as simple as two men regarding themselves as an item.

The acknowledgement of friends, and sometimes siblings and parents, was enough public acceptance. Children from surrogacy or informal insemination between gays and lesbians became more common in the early s. Gay marriage would suit propertied gays and social conservatives who want the security of marriage for their relationships.

It would also suit gay religious observers who want to make peace with their church and vicar or synagogue and Rabbi and be accepted by them. Say "Alexa, enable the Pew Research Center flash briefing". It organizes the public into nine distinct groups, based on an analysis of their attitudes and values.

Even in a polarized era, the survey reveals deep divisions in both partisan coalitions. Pew Research Center now uses as the last birth year for Millennials in our work. President Michael Dimock explains why. The vast majority of U. Use this tool to compare the groups on some key topics and their demographics. About Pew Research Center Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research.

Pew Research Center does not take policy positions. It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts. Newsletters Donate My Account. Research Topics. As we approach the fourth anniversary of the ruling, here are five key facts about same-sex marriage: 1 The share of Americans who favor same sex-marriage grew steadily for most of the last decade, but public support has leveled off in the last few years.

A twenty-something who told me that older relatives would ask him when he was in his teens, "Are you courting, yet? He now reports that relatives and colleagues seem overly keen to marry him off just because he has a steady partner. Even teenagers are subject to pervasive assumptions that they will marry and have children. They should be careful what they wish for as they casually use language like "husband-hunting" and broadcast their partner specifications online.

The room for diversity, for queerer set-ups, non-conformity and community could be squeezed out by normativity. Some 15, couples had converted their civil partnership or entered new marriages within the first fifteen months of gay marriage. Having the legal right to marry has propelled some previously discreet individuals from naught to nuptials in an accelerated coming-out.

People who didn't feel able to declare their same-sex desires during their youth have now come out when able to present themselves with a supportive partner by their side, respectable and engaged to be married. A recent same-sex wedding fair in London attracted a sizeable number of gay and lesbian visitors from cultural backgrounds that have been known for hostility towards homosexuals. An accomplished, preened Muslim man was there, planning on being married to his South American partner by an imam.

He was too modest to acknowledge that he might be a pioneer within his religious community. Also present was an impressive young British-Asian school teacher from a family that cares about social standing.

She and her beautiful lawyer girlfriend were planning their perfect wedding. They made me think about a Scottish-Indian gay guy and his lesbian sister who were clubbing acquaintances from my youth.

They were the tightest of accomplices in dodging parental pressure to marry people of the opposite sex. Marriage may not be the apotheosis of queer emancipation, but a broad acceptance of same-sex marriage will reduce coerced marriages and unsuitable marriages that gay men, lesbians and bisexuals might have otherwise entered into for cover.

Fissures and doubts have opened up within traditional families and religious communities which had been more solidly opposed to homosexuality.

Parents who previously believed that their grown-up children's sexual orientation would bring opprobrium upon the family are coming to recognise and accept the legal status of same-sex marriage, the favourable reception it has had in the British media and the shift in wider social attitudes.