In modern America, is gay marriage a moral issue or a civil rights issue?

I'm interested in people's thoughts on this issue - and I know many feel strongly one way or another about homosexuality. However, please answer sincerely and objectively. Thanks. In modern America, is gay marriage a moral issue or a civil rights issue?
it shouldn't be an issue at all!!!!!In modern America, is gay marriage a moral issue or a civil rights issue?
I've worked for MassEquality, which was an organization to pass and/or keep legal gay marriage in Massachusetts. Let me tell you--it's a civil rights issue.





Civil unions are not equal in the rights they provide to a marriage. For instance, when it comes to obtaining a green card for a fiance, with marriage it is possible, with a civil union it is not. Also, visitation rights at a hospital are provided for a spouse, but not necessarily for a person in a civil union. The list goes on and on.





I really don't understand people who say, ';Let gay people have the same rights, just don't call it marriage'; Whether you call it marriage or not, that's exactly what it is. They are trying to morph this issue into a moral or religious one, which it is not.





I hope someday soon people will open their minds and accept that when two people love each other, marriage should be an option regardless of their sexual preference.
In the US, we have two pretty huge elements to our form of government, at least in theory, if not in practice:


1-separation of church and state


2-freedom





Looking at those two elements, moral issues that don't involve criminal acts against others are outside the purvue of our government. Trying to pass legislation based on sexual orientation, when measured against the two aforementioned elements, goes against what our government is supposed to stand for.





So how people feel about homosexuality, while important to each person individually, does not give them the right to tell other people how to believe or behave, not in a country based on freedom. Singling out a certain group of people, and trying to pass laws based on religious beliefs that ultimately serve the purpose of oppressing said group, that sounds like fascism, not freedom.
Both.





The people who argue it on a moral stand point say it goes against Gods will, and upsets the natural order of things.





The people who argue it on a civil rights issue, say its your given right to be married to whoever you choose and that no discrimination should occur.





I personally am against gay marraige on the moral standpoint. Girls and Guys are made for each other physically and emotionally. I believe it goes against my religion, and I just dont agree with it look at it from a physical stand point, it doesnt match.
I am not gay....





I think it is a moral issue to those who deny it, and a civil rights issue to those you accept it.





I do not think anybody should treated any differently than anyone else, for any reason. Remember segregation in the 40s and 50s?








this country was founded on the idea that all men were created equally.








bitcxhes
I think it is both. It is definitely a civil rights ossue, no doubt about that, but people try to debate it with their morals, which is not right. We have already gone through this sort of thing before, When alchohal became illegal that didn't work and we learned we cannot base our laws on idvidual morals. That is up to the individual person and it's not right to surpress somebody's morals. That is how I feel (as you can tell I am a no on prop 8 person...lol)
It's a civil rights issue. Gay people in America do not have equal rights under the law.





The ten commandments or the bible are not the law of the land in the United States, so ';moral issues'; cannot have any bearing on the rights of U.S. citizens unless they become law.
i think that it is a civil rights issue. who cares, for as long as these people are not hurting anyone and they are not liabilities to the society,


why not let them. we cannot buy their happiness anyway.
They say its a civil rights issue but I mean...its really everyones opinion getting in on it because most of the population is christian they think homosexuality is a sin and blah blah blah...so much for separating church and gov.....
It's simple: it shouldn't be an issue! Depriving homosexuals of the right to marry, is exactly like african americans were unable to marry out of their race some 80 years ago.
Civil rights, as morals are objective and often steming from religious beliefs that we are supposed to have freedom of.
it must be a civil rights issue, because most people don't have any morals anymore.
it is a civil rights issue. the relationship two people have with each other cannot possibly be immoral.
i think its a human rights issue at this point. i believe gay marriage should be legal.