Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto
this week explained why he proposed legalizing same-sex marriage
throughout Mexico.
Last month, Pena Nieto proposed
amending the Mexican Constitution to reflect a Supreme Court decision
that struck down state marriage bans as unconstitutional.
“On May 17th, I presented
a series of initiatives that promote equality,” Pena Nieto wrote in
a The
Huffington Post op-ed. “Most notably, the package includes
a proposal that establishes in our Constitution the right to marry,
independently of gender identity or sexual orientation. This is in
line with last year’s ruling by our Supreme Court of Justice, which
determined that outlawing same-sex marriage was indeed
discriminatory.”
“Because individual States are not
automatically bound by this particular ruling, only a change to the
Constitution can guarantee every person’s full marriage rights,
regardless of where in our territory they choose to exercise them. It
was thus a suitable time to announce these initiatives, which arose
out of my government’s and my own personal conviction, to advance
toward a more inclusive society. The overall goal is to achieve a
Society of Rights in which all Mexicans are guaranteed equal rights
under the law.”
“Building a Society of Rights means
there is no room for first- and second-class citizens,” he
concluded.” “It means choosing inclusion over discrimination.
It means creating unity from diversity.”