Speeches from the rally
Introduction by Anders Östberg , vice chair Humanist society of Scotland
Ladies and gentlemen,
Thank you for coming out to support equality on a day like today when a warm house would seem a better option.
I'm Anders Östberg and I'm going to talk for a couple of minutes about the humanist society and why we are here , and then hand you over to across to Ross Wright from our policy committee to tell you about our submission to consultation the on the proposal to allow same sex marriage.
You may already have detected from my accent, I'm not from Scotland . I come from Sweden where the tradition is secular, by that I mean that all ideas are exchanged equally in the civic square and none take automatic precedence. Coming to Scotland I was astonished by the influence of religion in public discourse and on finding it disproportionate and privileged I decided to join the humanist society to try and redress the balance.
For those of you that don't know, Humanism is a secular philosophy based around the idea that we should treat others as we would like to be treated.
One of the main interfaces the humanist society has is through our large and growing group of Humanist celebrants who have been trained to help people celebrate the rites of passage in life...to welcome a child into a family, ......to help people celebrate their commitment to each other, which is sometimes a legal marriage and finally to celebrate a life that has finished. We should have had a bigger crowd of celebrants here today, but many have been called to conduct funerals and to support families is, of course, the higher priority.
Our main campaigns are concerning human rights ....specifically ....the right of children to be educated not indoctrinated, the right of people to live life they was they want so long as it does not harm others, and at the end of their lives to exercise autonomy in the way they die.
Now about today....I am happy to say that last year I got married in Sweden.....to a woman......and both Anna and I strongly feel that the right to commit to someone you love in marriage is a fundamental one, and a right that should not be denied to any loving couple that want it.
Despite what religious leaders say, we also know that many who are religious share this world view and we look forward to working with them, and many other groups, to get this measure approved and thus to increase the sum of happiness in Scotland.
I now hand you over to Ross Wright, a celebrant who is also member of our policy committee to outline our position on same sex marriage.......
Ross Wright... Humanist celebrant and member of HSS policy committee.
hanks for coming everyone, and as its a miserable winters' day I'll make it quick, and the argument FOR same sex marriage is quick....actually just 2 words.....Why Not?
We, the humanist society, and I guess most of you here think that marriage is a good thing. If two people love each other and want to get married, its really up to society...us...all together.........to come up with some very good reasons why they shouldn't, and I personally I can't think of a SINGLE reason why a same sex couple should be treated differently.......love....is love....is love ......it's all the same!
Our opponents say, but this is a Christian country and Christianity should be respected.....we absolutely agree.....everybody's views should be respected and provision is in the proposals to allow opt out. You don't want to marry anyone, ...don't do it. In the same way as I , as a humanist celebrant am not forced to marry anyone, the bill ensures that same right to all celebrants of any faith or philosophy.
But marriage is a religious institution!.........well no it's not.......it's been many things over the course of human history, variously controlled by lords, by communities , by churches, by the couple themselves, but today, technically, it's a legal contract supervised by the state which gives permission, effectively subcontracts,the right to marry people to some religious and non religious officiants.
It doesn't matter if your church or any organisation says you are "married" , if the state hasn't issued the paperwork, then you are NOT married. In fact, if I or any religious officiant were to declare people married without the paperwork from the registrar then we'd be committing a crime!
Finally it is said that the institution of marriage comes from religion and therefore religions should have a big say in its regulation. Once again the facts are different. People today have a lot if choice in how to express their commitment and they have voted with their feet. In Scotland in 2010
58 % of marriages were secular, conducted either by registrars or the Humanist Society of Scotland . Year on year while the proportion of religious marriages has decreased, the secular proportion has increased.
Last year the Humanist Society overtook the Catholic church in the number of weddings it conducted, and if present trends continue, in 2015 we will overtake the Church of Scotland.
So in reality, marriage has always been legally controlled by the state, and modern marriage in Scotland is de facto a secular institution. In presenting our submission on these proposals we invite the parliamentarians to keep that at the forefront of their minds in their deliberations over the Bill.
All of that is boringly practical, but for me the reason I enjoy marrying people, why most of us love marriage is because it is such an inspiring event. It can bring out the very best in people. It's a couple, appreciating each others good points, accepting each others faults and standing before their friends and family to express their love and commitment to each other. Why that right to publicly declare love and receive society's affirmation should be denied to anyone is a mystery to me. As our poster says .....love doesn't discriminate ..... and the Humanist Society of Scotlandis determined to do its utmost to give ever couple in this enlightened, modern Country the right to marry.
