Reply #200: Laws against interracial marriage were a recent innovation that altered a traditional right...

[NorthernSpy]

Whereas same-sex marriage was not something that any society recognized until very recently. In that respect, interracial marriage and same-sex marriage could scarcely be more different.


When the last remaining laws against interracial marriage were struck down in the United States, nothing about the institution itself changed: concepts such as presumption of paternity remained valid, and the language of the marriage license stayed the same. And yes, the cultural understanding that marriage is directed toward a couple's mutual creation and nurturing of new life also did not change.


These are things that do change when same-sex marriage is instituted. Mind you, that doesn't mean that we can't or shouldn't argue for same-sex marriage. It just means that the "it won't change the basic institution" argument is not applicable here, unlike with the case for removing the bans on interracial marriage.