April 5, 2013 by David K. Sutton
Rachel Maddow: Rights Are Not Supposed To Be Voted On
“Here’s the thing about rights. They’re not actually supposed to be voted on. That’s why they’re called rights.”
I’m sure you’ve heard a politician say (I’m talking to you Chris Christie) we should put same-sex marriage to a vote. But as Rachel Maddow said, “rights are not supposed to be voted on.” In this country we do not vote on rights. Yeah, I know, it has happened many times, in fact over 30 states put same-sex marriage to a popular vote, and until last year, every time people voted on same-sex marriage, it went down to defeat. That’s why we don’t vote on rights.
Full quote:
In the past decade, 31 states put to a vote the question of whether or not gay people should be allowed to get married. 31 states have put those minority rights up to a vote and in all 31 of those states, that minority rights issue has gone down to defeat. But here’s the thing about rights. They’re not actually supposed to be voted on. That’s why they’re called rights. – Rachel Maddow, 2010
