Dialogue Author on Proposition 8

In the Winter 2009 issue of Dialogue, Robert K. Vischer and others contributed to a series of perspectives on Proposition 8 . In the August 13 edition of Commonweal, Vischer revisits some of the same questions in light of Judge Vaughan Walker’s recent ruling on the Constitutionality of the proposition.
How We Talk About Marriage (and why it matters)
A decade from now, same-sex marriage will likely be the law in a majority of states. Given the domino effect of legislatures embracing a cause that has successfully claimed the mantle of equality, coupled with the stark generational shift in views on same-sex marriage, our national conversation seems headed toward a resolution. Nevertheless, the conversation will remain vital to our country, not just in terms of the end result, but in terms of the way the conversation unfolds. It matters very much how we talk about same-sex marriage, as well as how we talk about those who reject the idea of same-sex marriage.
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The difficulty of the conversation is exacerbated by the merits of the case against same-sex marriage. Especially when aligned against captivating concepts such as “marriage equality,” the arguments available to same-sex marriage opponents are ill-suited to sound-bite advocacy. Same-sex marriage does change marriage to the extent that it further decouples marriage and procreation, but it is difficult to translate this change into terms that resonate
with America’s live-and-let-live pragmatism.
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