The US Supreme Court made same-sex
marriage legal throughout the nation Friday in a much-awaited landmark decision
that triggered wild jubilation and tears of joy across the country.
In a 5-4 ruling, the highest court
in the United States said the Constitution requires all 50 states to carry out
and recognize marriages between people of the same sex.
President Barack Obama praised the
ruling as “a victory for America.”
The court decision marked a fresh
coup for the White House, coming a day after the Supreme Court upheld an
important and disputed section of Obama’s signature health care reform.
“Today we can say in no uncertain
terms that we’ve made our union a little more perfect,” Obama said at the White
House, which was later lit up in the rainbow colors of the gay rights movement.
“This decision affirms what millions
of Americans already believe in their hearts — when all Americans are treated
as equal, we are all more free.”
The Supreme Court ruling made the
United States the 21st country or territory in the world that recognizes
same-sex marriage as legal.
Flag-waving LGBT advocates on the
packed Supreme Court forecourt — some in tears — cheered, danced, shouted “USA!
USA!” and sang “The Star-Spangled Banner” in celebration.
Prominent in the crowd was Jim
Obergefell, the lead plaintiff in the case, clutching a photo of his deceased
husband John Arthur.
He took a brief phone call from
Obama, who told him: “Not only have you been a great example for people but
you’re also going to bring about a lasting change in this country.
“And it’s pretty rare where that happens,
so I couldn’t be prouder of you and your husband. God bless you.”
Obergefell, who was live on
television at the time, replied humbly: “Thank you, sir. That means an
incredible amount to me.”
Also in the vast crowd outside court
as the life-changing news filtered through were Robert Westover, 51, and Tom
Fulton, 57, who hugged and kissed.
“It feels like my birthday, the
prom, our wedding day. It’s hard to express the intensity of this moment, that
our love now is equal,” Westover told AFP.
The decision was applauded across
the country, with Hollywood celebrities such as Katy Perry and Ben Affleck
offering praise, while in New York revelers waved rainbow flags and gathered at
a famed gay bar to celebrate.
– Dissenting voices –
The case was brought by 14 same-sex
couples, and the widowers of two gay couples, including Obergefell, who had
challenged de facto bans on same-sex marriage in Michigan, Kentucky, Ohio and
Tennessee.
All four states had insisted in
their respective constitutions that marriage could only be a union between a
man and a woman.
“The Fourteenth Amendment (providing
equal protection under the law) requires a state to license a marriage between
two people of the same sex and to recognize a marriage between two people of
the same sex when their marriage was lawfully licensed and performed
out-of-state,” the court ruling said.
Marriage has been a core institution
in society since ancient times, “but it has not stood in isolation from
developments in law and society,” reasoned Justice Anthony Kennedy, who
delivered the ruling.
To exclude them from marriage,
Kennedy said, would deny same-sex couples “the constellation of benefits that
the states have linked to marriage.”
Voicing dissent was Chief Justice
John Roberts, who expressed concern that the court was making a decision better
left to elected state legislatures.
“If you are among the many Americans
— of whatever sexual orientation — who favor expanding same-sex marriage, by
all means celebrate today’s decision,” he said.
“Celebrate the achievement of a
desired goal. Celebrate the opportunity for a new expression of commitment to a
partner. Celebrate the availability of new benefits.
“But do not celebrate the
Constitution. It had nothing to do with it.”
The decision came two years to the
day after the Supreme Court, in another major ruling, struck down a
controversial federal law that denied US government benefits to wedded gays and
lesbians.
– ‘A tragic error’ –
While some praised the ruling,
others were eager to voice disapproval.
The conservative Family Research
Council expressed outrage, saying “no court can overturn natural law.”
“Nature and nature’s God, hailed by
the signers of our Declaration of Independence as the very source of law,
cannot be usurped by the edict of a court, even the United States Supreme
Court,” it said.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton,
whose state has also prohibited same-sex marriage, said the fight going forward
was now one of “religious liberty.”
“No court, no law, no rule and no
words will change the simple truth that marriage is the union of one man and
one woman,” he said in a statement.
The US Conference of Catholic
Bishops, which champions the Vatican’s opposition to marriage equality, called
Friday’s outcome “a tragic error.”
“Jesus Christ, with great love,
taught unambiguously that from the beginning marriage is the lifelong union of
one man and one woman,” it said.
Source: Vanguard
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