Dear Sir,

It goes without saying that I am deeply saddened by the Government’s decision to outlaw same-sex marriage. I am saddened from a moral standpoint that values the autonomy of human beings above ridiculous, bigoted beliefs.

However, I am not so naive as to expect people to agree with my opinion based simply on my own emotions, and I don’t ask you to. There are a plethora of logical reasons related to Bermudian laws and the economy that should implore any sane person to be as enraged as I am with this Act.

Our government appears weaker and weaker with every new development in its battle against same-sex marriage because it is a battle against progress that it is doomed to lose.

It already did lose last May, when the Supreme Court ruled in favour of same-sex marriage in Bermuda. While my young, optimistic mind would assume that any politician should have the utmost respect for legal proceedings, even if the outcome is not a desirable one for them, it seems that Bermudian politicians have no such integrity, and so created a way around it in the form of this Act.

Our governor, John Rankin, has the utmost respect for legal proceedings, and recognises his position — that of a moderator rather than an autocrat to the Bermuda Government. That integrity is what forced him to approve an Act that Britain obviously abhors, but that Bermuda monstrously pursues.

How can we ever be taken seriously by the world at large if we continue to hold on to outdated views of culture? This Act not only damages the social fabric of the island and diminishes the “community spirit” we so pride ourselves on, but also influences the way we come off to potential tourists, investors and businessmen.

I urge Bermudians, and government officials who base their opinions of same-sex marriage on emotion and tradition, to wake up and view the situation in a logical way, paying attention to its ripple effects on the legal integrity and economic attractiveness of the island.

FAE SAPSFORD

St George’s