President Barack Obama rather awkwardly made history this month.
His May 9 announcement that he officially supports same-sex marriage came in the wake of comments by Vice President Joe Biden and Education Secretary Arne Duncan, in which they both said that they were in favor of gay marriage.
With that added pressure, Obama was compelled to declare his position in an ABC interview instead of a speech or formal address. In contrast to his usual eloquence, Obama clumsily said that “at a certain point I’ve just concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same sex couples should be able to get married.â€
While his proclamation is undoubtedly a step in the right direction in terms of expanding rights for same-sex couples, it has come under attack for somewhat valid reasons. According to a New York Times/CBS poll, the majority of Americans believe Obama’s decision to come out in support of gay marriage was politically motivated.
The timing is indeed convenient for Obama, who is desperate to invigorate supporters who have so far failed to recreate the excitement of the 2008 campaign. And as the economy continues to weigh on Obama’s re-election prospects, he surely wouldn’t mind shifting the focus to a social issue that stirs the hearts of liberals.
This is not, then, the way that such a milestone should have been achieved. The politicization of Obama’s announcement and the haphazard way it came about unfortunately detract from its immense significance.
That significance is largely unrelated to Obama’s presidency or his future. For the first time, a president of the United States has declared their support for gay marriage. This is unlikely to bring about timely change to marriage laws, and it will probably not discourage more states from banning same-sex marriage. Rather, it sets a vital precedent. It should no longer be notable or spectacular for national leaders to support gay marriage – it should be expected. Supporting same-sex marriage should now become the norm, even at the highest levels of government.
Hopefully, all future Democratic presidents – and Republican presidents, eventually – will reaffirm Obama’s declaration. While gay marriage will remain a hot-button issue for some time, consistent support from politicians could build momentum towards a legal solution. Gay marriage should be legal, and now that Obama has declared his support, no politician, celebrity or ordinary citizen should be afraid to do the same.