Supreme Court Reluctantly But Historically Elevates Same-Sex Marriage

[xchrom]

http://www.alternet.org/supreme-court-reluctantly-historically-elevates-same-sex-marriage



The U.S. Supreme Court opened the legal door to same-sex marriage Wednesday, issuing two rulings that did not confer broad new civil rights but established that same-sex marriage must be treated equally under federal law in the 13 states that allow it.

“The crowds are overwhelmingly ecstatic about this experience,” said Tom Goldstein, publisher of SCOTUSblog.com, describing the scene at the Courthouse. “The bottom line from the court seems to be straightforward. It was not going to announce fundamental rights for same-sex marriage, but it will uphold the rights of people who have been married… sometimes you have to listen to the music, not the individual notes.”

The Court’s majority sent the message that same-sex marriages and individuals deserve equal treatment. In the first case, it threw out a key part of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), saying it was unconstitutional on equal protection grounds for the law to say that marriage can only be between a man and a woman. But it did not declare a constitutional right to same-sex marriage.

In a second and narrower decision, the Court held that a private group did not have legal standing to defend California’s Proposition 8, a same-sex marriage ban that was overturned by a lower court. Same-sex marriages can now resume in California, making it the 13th state to recognize these marriage. Supporters in the state say that they are likely to sponsor a new ballot measure, making same-sex marriage legal, to remove the prospect of further legal fights by gay marriage opponents.

[Kurovski]

1. I'm not one

to kiss the ring of one who finally stops kicking me, but I admit to a few tears upon watching the president of the freaking United States of America calling to congratulate the plaintiffs in this case on live TEE-VEE.