Yes, it should. Why? Because marriage is not exclusively religious.
The opposition to gay marriage comes from the fact that marriage has a long-standing tradition in religion and people are unwilling to give that up. But wait. Are there secular arguments against gay marriage? One I hear all the time is “kids need a mommy and a daddy”. What’s wrong with that argument right off the bat is that gay adoption is a completely different issue. Allow gay marriage first and then deal with adoption issues. (I don’t feel much like going into that one right now). Oh, and we can’t forget the other great secular argument: “After gay marriage comes marrying dogs and underage children”. Uh, no, it doesn’t. If you can’t see the difference between two consenting adults marrying each other and someone marrying a dog or a 5-year-old, you need to question your logic abilities.
Atheists get married, Jews get married (sorry Christians, marriage is not just for you), Hindus get married, there’s no good reason why two adult men or women should not be allowed to marry each other.
Some say: “Just give them civil unions and let us keep the word ‘marriage’ holy!” For one thing, civil unions have often not offered the same legal benefits that marriage offers (same-sex couples should definitely not be denied those benefits) and for another reason, like it or not, “marriage” and “civil union” do not carry the same connotations. “We’re getting married!” “We’re getting civilly unified!” The two do not carry the same weight in society and social circles. That may not seem like a valid reason, but you can bet it is. “Separate but equal” is inherently unequal.
I don’t want churches to be forced to perform gay marriages. If a church doesn’t want to, that’s fine by me. Churches can keep their religious ceremonies to themselves and are not obligated to do something that goes against their teachings. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t allow same-sex couples to marry. There are plenty of groups willing to marry two people of the same sex.
Yes, I greatly look forward to the day when my state allows me to marry the man I love. (California’s been really pissing me off about the issue lately).