美國聯邦最高法院於 2015 年 6 月 26 日，做出歷史性判決：美國同性伴侶結婚的權利受到美國憲法的保障。簡單的說，全美國的同性婚姻皆得到合法化，這引起了全球性關注，當然也衝擊台灣。 Facebook 上許多人換了彩虹大頭貼引起論爭，莫文蔚甚至在金曲獎上直呼：「 love wins ！」。 對於這個現象，一方面必須肯認，在爭取人權的進展上，這確實是重要的一步，令人雀躍；另一方面則必須擔憂，且更需要進一步去反思與批判，「同性婚姻合法化」與「性／別平等」之間的關係。當然，身為民族學徒，我自然從親屬研究的視角理解這些問題。 我們可以先從最高法院 〈多數意見書〉 最為討論的一段看起： No union is more profound than marriage , for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice, and family. In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than once they were. As some of the petitioners in these cases demonstrate, marriage embodies a love that may endure even past death. It would misunderstand these men and women to say they disrespect the idea of marriage. Their plea is that they do respect it, respect it so deeply that they seek to find its fulfillment for themselves. Their hope is not to be condemned to live in loneliness, excluded from one of civilization’s oldest institutions . They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of t...