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International organizations

There are many limitations on same sex marriages. While many people struggle with same sex marriage not being as accepted as traditional marriages, many efforts go into trying to establish its acceptance. The activism associated with same sex marriage ties in directly to the idea of globalization as the goal is to strive to have the world accept their viewpoints and ideas on this issue of same sex marriage. ^[1] As far as working on the same page to globalize the idea of same sex marriage and making it accepted by society, international activism comes in many different forms. These forms include outreach programs, protests, newspaper articles and editorials which are intended to educate people on the topic, and even simple actions such as spreading the world and getting people on the same page to possibly began to globally accept same sex marriages

Non-Governmental Organizations

Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) play an active part in international activism. These organizations are independent of the government’s help and take many different actions to express their viewpoints. ^[2] Because these organizations working to fight for same sex marriage equality are non-governmental, it can be expected that the viewpoints of the government will not be the focus of any controversial topic. Non-governmental organizations typically focus on social issues affected by certain political aspects. Some of the major Non-governmental organizations that work hard to bring equality to the idea of same sex marriages are the “International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA), International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC), the Gay and Lesbian International Sport Association(GLISA), International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer Youth and Student Organization (IGLYO), Global Respect In Education (GRIN), the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) and the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender & Intersex Law Association (ILGLaw).” The activities associated with these non-governmental organizations include protesting, running campaigns, speaking out, etc. The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA) specifically combines more than seven hundred and fifty other LBGT groups internationally. ^{[3] [4]} While plenty of NGOs advocate specifically for same sex marriages, they each go about their activism activities differently. Some of these NGOs even have slightly different goals and foci but they are all typically intending to provide equality for same sex marriages.

Publicity

When dealing with International activism on same sex marriages it is important to be able to communicate thoughts and ideas globally. While it is not necessary to be successful, it helps to have a more credible and respected source that can help to get non-governmental organizations point across or at least to help your social issues to be heard. The United represents a viable, effective source for information on issues related to same-sex marriage. The United Nations is an international assembly that discusses global issues, and therefore it has become a place which many non-governmental organizations which advocate for same sex marriages go to seeing seek out to bolster the power of their discussion. Having same sex marriages and LBGT rights brought up at a conference at the United Nations is a source of publicity for this topic and the non-governmental organizations that work to get their thoughts heard internationally. ^[5]

Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)

The “Defense of Marriage Act” DOMA, which is “An act to define and protect the institution of marriage” ^[6] , was created to establish that states did not discriminate against same sex marriage. DOMA is a form of same sex marriage activism as it helps to give rights back to those that have been legally married under their countries jurisdiction. The activism includes things such as government protections including health insurance, social security, etc. These protections therefore globalize a same sex marriage, which establishes DOMA as a form of activism. ^[7]

The Issue

The issue at hand is society disadvantages people in same sex marriages and does not treat equally compared to those in traditional marriages. A report to the Human Rights Council addressed many of the issues that affect people who want to engage in same sex marriages.^[8] The main issue addressed is the discrimination and violence that people are exposed to simply because of their sexual preference and gender identification. Individuals who identify as homosexual deal with things like being attacked, tortured, raped, and even in some cases killed. Other cases of violence that are not necessarily physical include being exposed to inhuman and degrading treatment. They are discriminated against and in some cases they get denied rights such as employment, health care, education, freedom of expression, etc. The Human Rights Council has noted that discrimination and violence of this nature has been taking place for over twenty years. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights considers non-discrimination as a major right to which all people are entitled. This idea protect lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered (LGBT) persons. In all, this report cements the global ideals and obligations owed to all humans including LGBT persons: “universality, equality, and non-discrimination,” “state obligations under international human right laws,” “non-violence,” and “discriminatory laws and practices.” ^[9] This report directed to the Human Rights Council and the United Nations is an example of International activism on same sex marriages because it was created with the intentions of making this issue recognized by more people.

Globalizing Same-Sex Marriages

Globalizing same sex marriage is the main goal of international activists on same sex marriage along with recognition of same sex relationships. In Kollman’s papers “Same Sex Unions: The Globalization of an Idea” ^[10] and “The Global Politics of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Human Rights: An Introduction” ^[11] focuses on same sex marriage as a factor of globalization. She expands on the topic of same sex unions becoming globalized and argues that one of the main reasons why the idea of same sex marriages is becoming more and more accepted is because of global activism. People now are currently becoming more accepting to the idea of same sex marriage compared to a couple of decades ago when the idea was unheard of. LBGT human rights have become a major focus of global political struggles. Same sex marriage is recognized as a controversial issue in today’s society; however it has not yet been taken seriously enough to begin working toward actively solving the problem and accepting it. One thing to note is that while globalization of same sex marriages is not a new concept, it is still a process and will not be accepted in one day, much like any other struggle.

International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, and Intersex Association (IGLA)

The “International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, and Intersex Association” (ILGA) is a well-known non governmental organization that actively works to globalize the idea of same sex marriage. ^[12] The ILGA’s international activism efforts includes an idea to request for support on project proposals that will allow the adoption of LGBT people’s right to be a nation plan put into action. ILGA also focuses on noting the discrimination in health care provide or not-provided for those that identify with LGBT(Lesbian Gay Bisexual Trans). They often have LGBT activist speak out about same sex rights, including marriage. This allows them to make their viewpoints known by more people with the intentions to hopefully gain supporters in the process. The ILGA has also recently turned to technology and even started spreading their viewpoints on same sex marriage and rights through the uses of the radio. Jonathan Garcia’s and Richard Parker’s paper “From Global Discourse to Local Action: The Makings of a Sexual Rights Movement?”^[13] , focuses on how the creation of this global idea of same sex marriage causes many things to happen locally. The paper shows evidence of how it has progressed from just an idea to being put into action. It also gives evidence to the fact that this same sex movement is being recognized along with global influences. Increased publicity on the idea of same sex marriage increases the activism surrounding this issue. Helping to spread the word is the goal of most non-governmental organizations and ILGAs mission and efforts are dedicated to spreading their viewpoint on same sex rights including marriage.

The International Gay and Lesbian Human Right Commission (IGLHRC)

The “International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission” (IGLHRC) is a non-governmental organization that is dedicated to human rights promotion for people that are discriminated against solely because of their sexual preferences. ^[14] Their effort for engaging in international activism includes making people aware of the human rights violations. IGLHRC does this through documentation of accounts of abuse. They also provide help with human rights crises. They’re efforts also include eliminating laws and policies that discriminate against those that identify with homosexuality. As IGLHRC is aware that LGBT persons face a great deal of violence because of their sexuality they take great measures in trying to protect them.

The International Lesbian and Gay Law Association (ILGLaw)

The International Lesbian and Gay Law Association (ILGLaw) is a non-governmental organization that is dedicated to seeing that the law is equal for all LGBT persons as they are for heterosexual people. ^[15] They too are aware that there are laws that should be guaranteed to all people that aren’t guaranteed to people that are homosexual. According to James D. Wilets’ ^[16] article “A comparative and International Law Perspective” ^[17] that was published in “The Human Rights of Sexual Minorities” paper it has been said that Instead of a same sex couple being registered as married, it would be called “registered domestic partners” while legally being the same thing. One major aspect of same sex marriages that is affected is parenthood. Issues may arise when either of the people in the same sex couple is deciding to claim custody over the child as it can technically only be the offspring of only one of them. Also an issue arises when a same sex couple may have to go through some type of government agency in order to adopt or find a surrogate mother. This includes the discrimination that LGBT person will have to face as “gay parents.” Relating publishing articles with this type of information in newspapers to International activism it Is closely related as it increases the knowledge about same sex marriages and is available to people all over the world. All the issues listed above are the types of discrimination that LGBT persons deal with and the ILGLaw uses these efforts of publicity to help to make it known internationally that they are being unfairly treated.

Overview

After looking at all the different ways in which international activism can be carried out, international activism is an accepted approach for attempting to globalize same sex marriages. An effort could be to simply go through the government to try to handle this controversial issue. However by omitting the government from the situation it gives the people a chance to actually have a say, even though the topic of same sex marriage may not be such a public idea. It would be the difference between being told what to do and having an actual say in what you believe in or want to do. While it is a controversial topic and it may divide people because of diametrically opposed viewpoints it is necessary to take this route simply because it affects more than the lives of just the people in government so they shouldn’t have the only say. Much like any other rights that aren’t naturally granted, there has to be some type of fight because nothing happens without a solid foundation. By being same sex activist and participating in international activism it allows for things locally to affect the world globally. Each act of activism gets the world one step closer to the globalization of same sex marriage.

References