2nd Quarter Exam Speech Period 2 12/9
I’m here to persuade you to change your perception of same-sex marriage.
Same- sex marriage is considered a taboo in our society when it should be positively recognized.
A taboo is an unthinkable action. Even the thought of violating it triggers social punishment. Taboos are the social “thought police,” discouraging individuals from considering certain type of actions. An important part of characterizing societies is the different social norms and taboos that govern their members’ behavior. In some societies, eating beef is a taboo; while in many other societies eating dog meat is a taboo. Trade in human organs is another example of a common taboo. The list of taboos is not necessarily stable. Some taboos may weaken over time or even disappear, while others may become stronger and more dominant.
“Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner”, a movie about a white couple’s reaction when their daughter falls in love with a black man, strayed from the social norm of the late 60’s. The fact that the African-American character was a successful doctor did little to lower the anxieties of white audiences. Now, almost forty years later, the public hardly reacts at all to interracial relationships. What’s changed? The Supreme Court ruled that laws forbidding people of different races to marry were unconstitutional. The civil rights movement helped remove other blatant legal barriers to the integration of racial minorities. This furthers the point of social taboo’s evolving over time.
Same sex marriage has been the most controversial taboo brought to light recently. Senator David Mark, of Nigeria, has rejected the proposal for same sex marriage in the country, saying “it is offensive to his country’s culture and tradition”, after declaring a public hearing on the Same Sex Marriage Prohibition, Mark claimed that ”nothing on earth justifies same sex marriage, it is offensive and repugnant. I will preach against it and we must…