We need to foreground the economic underside of gay marriage, instead of focusing on its social conventions.
I published “Marry you must!: Gay marriage in Illinois” in the Chicago Reader. It’s a look at what changes with the passage of gay marriage legislation in Illinois.
Here’s an excerpt:
Is it unfair that a lesbian would have to pay so much when an opposite-sex wife would not have to pay that amount after her husband’s death? Sure. Is it unfair that married straight people enjoy certain benefits because of marriage? Of course. Will the ability to marry actually provide average gays and lesbians various kinds of benefits? Definitely. Should those benefits be available to everyone, regardless of their marital status?
It’s that last question that never gets asked.
You can read the rest here.