One more thought about fighting for LGBT equality…

Sometimes I say to people, who aren’t quite convinced that we straight folks need to engage this battle, that it’s important because we are all less free, or less protected—we are all diminished—when we are not truly equal. And sometimes, in return, I get one of those looks that seems to convey no small bit of disdain for what they perceive to be hyperbole at worst, or an abstract concept of real freedom and real protections at best.

But it’s not abstract. There are real-world consequences to enacting legislation that seeks to restrict the equality of one group as severely as possible.

An Ohio man's domestic violence conviction was voided last week because he wasn't married to the woman he abused. Dallas McKinley was convicted of a fourth-degree felony after he pushed his girlfriend, hit her and threw objects at her. The ruling, as it stands, leaves prosecutors with the option of seeking a lesser charge.

This is all because the state of Ohio would rather allow domestic violence without consequences than let gay couples get married. The state's constitutional amendment banning gay marriage has made domestic violence law only applicable to married couples.
Getting whacked in the noodle by random objects launched by a drunken beau who legally has the right to do so is about as concrete as it gets.

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