Karen Chow

Case Study 1

By Karen Chow

I chose this editorial cartoon that was posted on the Toronto Star as my first case study. When I first looked at this cartoon, I found it sarcastic and funny yet it also made me feel a little uncomfortable. As simple as it appears, the cartoon illustrates two profound sides of the topic on the legalization of gay and lesbian marriages. One side is obviously the political aspect of this very hot topic and the other side relates to me as a religious view on the impact of passing such law. I was hesitant in discussing about this issue since it became a very sensitive subject after the hate crimes law has included sexual orientation as one’s freedom to be protected.

The main characters of this cartoon are two simply drawn dog and cat. The dog was sitting at the left side of the cat, looking down to the cat. The dog said to the cat, “I love you, Fluffy, but promise me we’ll never take this before the parliament.” In this cartoon, the dog and the cat are in love. However by law and by nature, this should not happen. Their bond is unnatural because they belong to different species.

Theo Moudakis used a sarcastic way to express how he and many individuals feel about this topic. The Liberal government narrowly defeated a Canadian Alliance motion to restrict marriage rights to straight couples in a dramatic 137-132 vote. To many, this signifies a division of opinion in the country. The same motion four years ago was struck down by both sides of the Commons with a wide 216-55 margin. The difference clearly shows that opinions within the Liberal have evolved in favour to homosexual marriages. Legalization of marriage between the same sexes has not only caused conflicts in the parliament. Its impact was found in the reactions of many different religious communities holding protests in downtown Toronto as well as in Ottawa. One side’s argument is that “marriage is and should remain the union of one man and one woman.” The opposite side states that homosexuals should have the equality and freedom to choose a companion and be lawfully married to them, like the heterosexuals do. Suddenly it seems that the whole country is divided into two teams. I think one may wonder how the social values on marriage be changed so much when just 50 years ago, many would think this is impossible.

Here I have to express my standpoint on the legalization of gay and lesbian marriages. I am a Christian and I am against it. Not that I discriminate gays and lesbians. It’s just that I believe marriage should be between one man and one woman. Recently, my church organizes some programs and classes that discussed about homosexuality and how it is viewed in the bible. I am very grateful to these classes because they answered a lot of my questions and doubts. At the same time, my eyes were opened to a horrible impact of passing such law and its long-term effect on the human race. If marriage is redefined as two individuals who love each other, marriages between the same sexes obviously are legal. Then one question arises. Would the marriage between two different species be considered as lawful too? Undoubtedly the above example is more extreme and one suspects the possibility of it, but who knows? That is what people thought hundreds years ago about same sex marriage. If same sex marriage and the addition of sexual orientation to hate crimes law are legalized and are in effect, the new definition of marriage will be printed in textbooks. This generation may still be a bit more traditional and follow the old ways, but imagine our future generations reading and absorbing this knowledge since they are very young. What would be its impact on their young minds and on their values when they grow up? If the society evolves in this pattern, the human race would extinct. This is my interpretation of a different message that the cartoon wants to show.

Same sex marriage is a huge issue in our society now. Although it has not been confirmed and the bills still need to go through the Supreme Court, personally I think it signifies a step away from morality. People should recognize that this could be a turning point for human history. During these past weeks, the opposition and protests gave the majority of people a negative image and have made religion believers, especially Christians, very unpopular. I think that the Christian community should show more love and understanding to the gays and lesbians to prove to them that the protests are acts out of love.