Does It Or Doesn’t It?
Back in July, on the 141st anniversary of the Fourteenth Amendment, after Maine voted for marriage equality, but before the voters repealed the law, I looked at where we were in the struggle to achieve civil marriage for all. I looked to our Constitution to see what we could glean from it, and wrote, “Does The U.S. Constitution Already Make Gay Marriage Legal?” I believe it does.
I wrote,
The Supreme Court of The United States, in 1959 made it clear:
“Marriage is one of the “basic civil rights of man,” fundamental to our very existence and survival….”
American lawyer and constitutional law professor Erwin Chemerinsky (Dean and Distinguished Professor of Law, University of California, Irvine, School of Law,) recently wrote, “Gay Marriage and the Constitution.” He offers some insight, including this:
“Denying marriage equality to gays and lesbians is a powerful statement that society still believes them to be second-class (or worse) citizens.”
And,
“…many courts now recognize that discrimination against gays and lesbians violates principles of equal protection.
“Courts have held that the government lacks any persuasive reasons for outlawing same sex marriage. Opponents of marriage equality argue that marriage, by definition, is between a man and a woman. But that is a definition, not an argument. For much of American history, in many states, marriage was defined as having to be between people of the same race.”
As the year draws to a close, as we celebrate our equality successes and bemoan our losses, it’s important to see the bigger picture.
The march toward equality is happening all around us. Yesterday, we won in Mexico City, the first locality in Latin America to “legalize” same sex marriage and they fought for and won the right for same-sex couples to adopt. That is a huge win. Portugal is poised to join its European neighbors – Belgium, Norway, Sweden, Spain and the Netherlands – in offering marriage equality.
This is a battle that will continue for decades, until we achieve equality through the Supreme Court. And for that to happen, there need to be many more wins at the state level. Which means we all need to continue to fight and enlist the aid of others.
Yes, it’s painful. Yes, it’s a lot of work. But what worthwhile endeavor isn’t?
Editorial note:
“Does The U.S. Constitution Already Make Gay Marriage Legal?” has consistently been one of the most popular posts here. I hope you’ll take a moment to read it. Perhaps it will help you in conversations you’ll have at family dinners this Holiday Season.
Related posts:
- Listen: NJ Senator Gill: “I vote for the equality of marriage because I believe in the constitution.”
- Happy Constitution Day!
- Poll: 52% Of Americans Think Supreme Court Will Confine Marriage To Heterosexuals
- Does The U.S. Constitution Already Make Gay Marriage Legal?
- BREAKING: Gay Marriage Ban Is Unconstitutional? Federal Judge Rules Yes, In Part!
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I'm with you right up till the last bit.
I don't think the battle needs to continue for decades, and I don't think we should be spending all this time and effort on state recognition. As I said yesterday on my blog (–> blog whore!!! <–), I'm starting to wonder if President Obama isn't defending DOMA with such unbridled enthusiasm to force the Supreme Court to step in and declare the obvious: What's being done is blatantly unconstitutional, makes plainly clear that lesbians and gays should be a protected class, and violates the suspect classification doctrine.
Matt, I agree it doesn't "need" to continue for decades, but the reality is that it WILL take decades for us to win state by state. Logic and history tell us the South will be the last holdouts if marriage equality remains a "states' rights" issue. History also tells us that for the Supreme Court to rule in our favor, there needs to be more momentum and more than a handful of states that offer marriage equality.
To be honest, since you pointed it out (and as I respect your thoughts immensely!) I would have preferred I wrote, "This is a battle that will continue for decades, until – and even after – we achieve equality through the Supreme Court."
The battle, sadly, does not end even as when gain full legal equality.
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BTW, Dear Readers,
Matt Algren is a well-respected voice in our community, and writes "Asterisk" at http://blog.mattalgren.com/
(Since you were too humble to write that yourself, sir!)
I am pretty awesome now that you mention it.
I just found your blog today, and I love this post (and your site in general). I am a married (when I am at work in DC but not when I am at home in Virginia) lesbian Foreign Service Officer, and I have added a link to your blog to my blogroll at http://lifeafterjerusalem.blogspot.com.
i agree with all of you and i think that no matter what the supreme court says it can't change or hide the fact that the constitution clearly states that gays should have the right to marry. but some people have started to make arguments that refers to the bible that gay marriage is wrong. now don't get me wrong i believe in the lord jesus and god and i do love them both but when people say that's the reason god made adam and eve, it gets me slightly angry because no one should tell people who they could love and marry.
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