Marriage equality is not a minor issue to be minimized, ignored or treated as a political inconvenience. It is a civil rights issue affecting millions of people who are our neighbors, friends and family. They are Americans who are entitled to the same privileges and benefits afforded to the rest of us. The 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution requires equal protection under the law. Rights given to one group by law should not be denied another. It’s simple: gay couples must not be denied the right to marry. We have a moral obligation to treat every human being with respect – even if he or she is different. Imagine for a moment what it’s like to be gay and in high school in South Carolina. Maybe you don’t need to imagine. But try to put yourself in the place of an adolescent looking for acceptance but facing disapproval and bigotry from classmates, teachers, even family members. Now imagine that same student in civics class, studying the South Carolina Constitution and learning that even his own state’s laws sanction discrimination against him. With nowhere to turn, facing bullying and pressure to hide who they really are, is it any wonder that gay youth attempt suicide at four times the rate of their heterosexual classmates? Sign and share this petition if you won’t be silent on the issue of marriage equality and civil rights.