Same-sex marriage is legal everywhere in the U.S., now and forever. That’s according to the U.S. Supreme Court, which handed down its historic 5-4 ruling this morning in the case Obergefell v. Hodges.
U.S. Senator Brian Schatz, D–Hawaii, was pleased, to say the least, in this statement emailed out by his press office early this morning:
“Today’s Supreme Court decision is a big win for gay rights, for civil rights, and for human rights. Every committed couple, whether they are gay or straight, deserves to be treated equally under the law. With this historic ruling, the Supreme Court has reaffirmed what most Americans already know – the Constitution protects the rights of every American, regardless of who they love.”
Congressional Representative Tulsi Gabbard, D–2nd District, agrees with Schatz:
“I applaud the Supreme Court’s ruling today. Some countries in the world are theocracies. Fortunately, the United States of America is not one of them. Therefore, as long as the government is involved in marriage, it must do so with fairness—treating all Americans equally. Today’s ruling by the Supreme Court is an important victory to this end.”
The State of Hawaii legalized same-sex marriage in 2013 during a contentious Special Legislative Session called by then-Governor Neil Abercrombie. Of course, news reports are already filling with quotes from bitter, fist-shaking from Republican presidential candidates like Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum about how this is the end of all things holy, but screw that.
My fear though is like the famous 5-4 unanimous Supreme Court ruling* in Brown V. Board of Education, today only marks the beginning of what might be a long legal battle to get every court clerk in the U.S. to guarantee same-sex marriage. U.S. Senator Mazie Hirono, D–Hawaii, would seem to agree. Here’s here statement, released a few hours after the ruling:
“Today’s ruling is a moment for celebration, an opportunity to thank everyone who fought tirelessly to make today a reality, and a chance to reflect on the great strides that have been made. Today is also a time to recommit to fighting for full equality.
“Currently, federal law does not extend protections against employment discrimination to LGBT Americans, and though some states have rectified the omission at the state level, many have not. We need to pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) at the federal level.”
Click here to read the Supreme Court ruling itself. Click here to read Mother Jones‘ take on Justice Antonin Scalia’s blustery dissent.
* For some reason I reported the vote tally on Brown incorrectly. I regret the error.
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