Legalizing Same-Sex Marriage

June 17th, 2008 was one of the most memorable days in history for many same-sex couples in California as it was the first full day that courthouses opened their doors to administer marriage licenses. The ban against same-sex marriage was overturned by the California Supreme Court and many couples and partners raced to obtain the licenses they had long awaited. However, same-sex marriage is not approved of in almost every state but California. Why is it okay to prevent two people who want to be together for the rest of their lives from legalizing their devotion to each other?
This is the core of a very controversial topic; separation of church and state. For many Americans, it is a fundamental rule they have always known to follow from their religious beliefs that members of the same sex should never be allowed to be married. In fact, it goes even further than that and has made homosexual relationships shunned upon. But if our nation really does have a separation between its religious beliefs and its laws, then why is it necessary to prevent members of the same sex from being married through their state?
For many Americans this legalization of same-sex marriages will provide hope for the future that their state will someday make the same decision. With California setting the precedent, hopefully the rest of the United States will realize that there is no need to forbid couples from marrying one another because of their gender. It takes away the very freedom that our nation is founded upon and only displays the influence that the dominating religions of our nation have on the way our laws are made.
For now, many couples in California can finally make their bonds to one another official and above all, legal.