Issue Position: LGBT & Marriage Equality

Issue Position

As a board-certified psychiatrist, I am confident that sexual orientation is genetically determined, not a matter of choice. As a result, I see no basis for judging, condemning or discriminating against a person in response to his/her sexual orientation. By extension, our government should not discriminate on the basis of a genetically-determined trait (be it race, ethnicity, sex, or sexual orientation). Attorneys General in several states have recently declined to enforce state laws against marriage equality due to their discriminatory nature, with the backing of the DOJ. I support their decisions.

Just as the rights and privileges associated with marriage were extended from same-race heterosexual couples to interracial heterosexual couples (in 1967), they should now extend further to include same-sex couples -- of any race -- who wish to make a legally-binding, lifelong commitment to one another.

As a Christian, I acknowledge every church's right to accept or deny a government-authorized marriage as a sacrament. But I also agree with Pope Francis who, when asked about homosexuality, responded, "Who am I to judge?"

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