These are the days that make me proud to be an American

[ebonlock]

Mass. Court Strikes Down Gay-Marriage Ban


"Whether and whom to marry, how to express sexual intimacy, and whether and how to establish a family — these are among the most basic of every individual's liberty and due process rights," the majority opinion said. "And central to personal freedom and security is the assurance that the laws will apply equally to persons in similar situations."

"Barred access to the protections, benefits and obligations of civil marriage, a person who enters into an intimate, exclusive union with another of the same sex is arbitrarily deprived of membership in one of our community's most rewarding and cherished institutions," the opinion said.


About damn time.

Comments

[ebonlock.livejournal.com]

Not to rain on the parade, but the court has also given the legislature 180 days to 'do something about it'.

True, but the question has been opened up for discussion. It's a foot in the door, so to speak, and removing gay marriage from the realm of "religious/moral" context and showing us that if we're talking about a legal institution that includes certain rights and privileges, the law should not be biased against one group and not another. This is precisely where the fight should be focusing, and I see it as a step in the right direction.

[tersa.livejournal.com]

This is precisely where the fight should be focusing, and I see it as a step in the right direction.

I totally agree. :) I'm just not liking the wimping out the courts took by giving the legislature the opportunity to change things. :P

[ebonlock.livejournal.com]

I totally agree. :) I'm just not liking the wimping out the courts took by giving the legislature the opportunity to change things. :P


Me either, but it really is a huge step, just acknowledging that same sex couples should have the same rights as hetero couples. Will the religious right do their best to fight this and "protect" marriage (from what I can't understand, I mean it's not like hetero couples will lose their rights or something)? Oh, probably, they seem to be lacking in useful and positive ways to spend their time and energy. But right now I've got very high hopes and I'd like to enjoy this small victory.

[centerfire.livejournal.com]

Realistically, the Massachusetts legislature can't do anything about this, so the court hardly "wimped out". A state constitutional amendment would be necessary to reverse the court (I do not believe that the Massachusetts legislature has the power to limit the jurisdiction of the state Supreme Judicial Court, the way Congress can with the SCOTUS), and in Massachusetts that requires the approval of two successive legislatures, as well as ratification by the electorate as a whole. It's neither a sure bet nor a short-term response.

The 180-day stay is the court mugging for the cameras: "See how magnanimous we are; we're giving the legislature an opportunity to weigh in." But in practical terms it doesn't really have an affect on anything, besides delaying when the flood of marriage license applications from gay couples will begin.