Moral Argument, Religion, and Same-Sex Marriage: Advancing the Public Good
The diverse expert contributors to this volume from the fields of politics and law use moral argumentation with respect to same-sex marriage, gay rights in general, and California's Prop 8. The arguments are advanced in terms of the nation's foundational political and legal principles, extending ethical argumentation to important contemporary public policy areas such as marriage, the separation of church and state, and the rearing of children. Several chapters also contest the perceived if not actual establishment in the law and public policy of heterosexist and religious bias that continues to work against full and meaningful inclusion of sexual minorities. This bias is ironically and improperly couched in the language of American political and religious values, and it misunderstands the nation's core principles, or willfully miscasts them as inapplicable to many Americans and their families. Nonetheless, this bias is pervasive in the nation's political discourse, working to deny an important right and the recognition of equality to many citizens. The main contribution ofMoral Argument, Religion, and Same-Sex Marriage is in its direct engagement with the political and legal arguments of the gay community's critics on their own moral and ethical terms. Along the way, important concepts in public discourse_such as governmental neutrality, the right to marry, and religious freedom_are presented and cast in the light of liberal-democratic theory.
1123979758
Moral Argument, Religion, and Same-Sex Marriage: Advancing the Public Good
The diverse expert contributors to this volume from the fields of politics and law use moral argumentation with respect to same-sex marriage, gay rights in general, and California's Prop 8. The arguments are advanced in terms of the nation's foundational political and legal principles, extending ethical argumentation to important contemporary public policy areas such as marriage, the separation of church and state, and the rearing of children. Several chapters also contest the perceived if not actual establishment in the law and public policy of heterosexist and religious bias that continues to work against full and meaningful inclusion of sexual minorities. This bias is ironically and improperly couched in the language of American political and religious values, and it misunderstands the nation's core principles, or willfully miscasts them as inapplicable to many Americans and their families. Nonetheless, this bias is pervasive in the nation's political discourse, working to deny an important right and the recognition of equality to many citizens. The main contribution ofMoral Argument, Religion, and Same-Sex Marriage is in its direct engagement with the political and legal arguments of the gay community's critics on their own moral and ethical terms. Along the way, important concepts in public discourse_such as governmental neutrality, the right to marry, and religious freedom_are presented and cast in the light of liberal-democratic theory.
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Overview

The diverse expert contributors to this volume from the fields of politics and law use moral argumentation with respect to same-sex marriage, gay rights in general, and California's Prop 8. The arguments are advanced in terms of the nation's foundational political and legal principles, extending ethical argumentation to important contemporary public policy areas such as marriage, the separation of church and state, and the rearing of children. Several chapters also contest the perceived if not actual establishment in the law and public policy of heterosexist and religious bias that continues to work against full and meaningful inclusion of sexual minorities. This bias is ironically and improperly couched in the language of American political and religious values, and it misunderstands the nation's core principles, or willfully miscasts them as inapplicable to many Americans and their families. Nonetheless, this bias is pervasive in the nation's political discourse, working to deny an important right and the recognition of equality to many citizens. The main contribution ofMoral Argument, Religion, and Same-Sex Marriage is in its direct engagement with the political and legal arguments of the gay community's critics on their own moral and ethical terms. Along the way, important concepts in public discourse_such as governmental neutrality, the right to marry, and religious freedom_are presented and cast in the light of liberal-democratic theory.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780739141199
Publisher: Lexington Books
Publication date: 09/03/2009
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 266
File size: 1 MB

About the Author

Gordon A. Babst is associate professor of political science at Chapman University and author ofLiberal Constitutionalism, Marriage, and Sexual Orientation: A Contemporary Case for Dis-Establishment. Emily R. Gill is Caterpillar Professor of Political Science at Bradley University and author of Becoming Free: Autonomy and Diversity in the Liberal Polity. Jason A. Pierceson is associate professor of political studies and legal studies at University of Illinois at Springfield and author of Courts, Liberalism, and Rights: Gay Law and Politics in the United States and Canada.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Introduction
Part 2 Part I. Same-Sex Marriage and Partnerships
Chapter 3 Introduction to Part I
Chapter 4 Chapter 1. A Commentary on the Old Saw that Same-Sex Marriage Threatens Civilization
Chapter 5 Chapter 2. Looking for Liberty and Defining Marriage in Three Same-Sex Marriage Cases
Chapter 6 Chapter 3. The Religion Clauses and Same-Sex Marriage
Chapter 7 Chapter 4. Against Neutrality in the Legal Recognition of Intimate Relationships
Part 8 Part II. Same-Sex Attraction and Liberal Democratic Theory
Chapter 9 Introduction to Part II
Chapter 10 Chapter 5. Marriage Equality and the Morality of Liberalism: The California Decision
Chapter 11 Chapter 6. Same-Sex Marriage and the American Political Tradition
Chapter 12 Chapter 7. The Special Status of Religion Under the First Amendment…and What it Means for Gay Rights and Anti-Discrimination Laws
Chapter 13 Chapter 8. Supporting Queer Youth: A New Vision of Child, Family, and State
Chapter 14 Chapter 9. Consuming its own? Heteronormativity contra Human Plurality
Chapter 15 Conclusion
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