Alright that title's a bit misleading. I care. And I'm glad he supports it. Finally.
But can those of us who support same-sex marriage please not forget how long it took him to decide to be assertive on the issue - to do the right thing? Yes, yes I know you all want to celebrate this historical moment and it needed to happen. But when I look back on this historical moment, I'm not going to forget all the history that led up to it. The fact that Obama supported same-sex marriage in earlier days as a politician are not an indication that his views have been 'evolving' on same-sex marriage. We know his consideration of same-sex marriage is about votes and electability - please don't be deluded into thinking otherwise.
And yes, I know, electability is an important thing for a politician to consider - if you're not re-elected, you can't make some of the changes you want to make and blah blah blah. But am I the only one who feels insulted that it is only NOW important enough for him to stand behind an issue that he likely has supported personally for decades? Now that the Vice President made some pro-equality comments that made Obama look ass backwards. Thanks for finally making the decision to be an ally to the queer community on the issue of marriage - we appreciate your time and consideration. I hope you've enjoyed your nearly 20 year marriage in the meantime.
In a position as influential as say, President of our country, are we really willing to dismiss the fact he ignored and avoided this issue for years, when he likely has been quietly on the side of same-sex marriage for a long time? I guess it's an easy issue to avoid when you know your wife could make decisions if you were hospitalized and vice versa. It's not an easy issue to avoid for many.
Think of all the horror stories you've heard about same-sex couples being denied rights over one another - the partners who couldn't attend funerals because the partner's family wouldn't allow it. The partners who couldn't make decisions on behalf of a loved one in the hospital. The partners who lost the children they raised with the biological parent - because once s/he dies, partner has no legal guardianship over the children. Obama speaking out for same sex marriage today does NOT erase the fact that he could have - um, SHOULD have - pushed for progress sooner.
Am I glad Obama finally found his integrity and spoke what needed to be said? Of course. I don't know if pro same-sex marriage or anti same-sex marriage voters will rally harder - I don't know if this will affect his electability this fall. But I assure you he's thought long and hard on that consideration.
Please don't accept "Ok, now I support same-sex marriage" as repentence for his years of apathy and avoiding the subject when he damn well knows better. I'm not saying that it isn't a good thing that Obama spoke out in support of same-sex marriage, of course it is. But as a leader, as a President, as a person who claims to be an ally to queer communities - I think he deserves a little criticism here - not just the enthusiastic pride and excitement from queer communities and allies that I've seen throughout the day. Let's celebrate when action is taken. I'm not giving anyone a cookie for making the sensical statement that, hmm, maybe equality and civil rights are a good thing.
