This Week in the Mercury
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
LGBTQI-Z Same-Sex Marriage Going All the Way to the Supreme Court, Baby!
Posted by Sarah Mirk on Tue, Jun 5, 2012 at 11:59 AM
Good news for people who think other people should not be denied basic civil liberties because of who they fall in love with!
California's anti-same-sex marriage law Proposition 8 is headed to the Supreme Court, after a decision by the US Circuit Court of Appeals today. The appeals court decided not to reconsider the decision of two lower courts that declared Prop 8 unconstitutional. That means Prop 8 is likely headed to the Supreme Court.
On the other side of the country, a same-sex marriage debate is also likely headed to the Supremes' desks. Last week, a federal appeals court in Boston unanimously decided that the nation's Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional. Those judges made the salient point: Uh... why does our secular federal government care who gets married? Or in their words: "Congress’ denial of federal benefits to same-sex couples lawfully married in Massachusetts has not been adequately supported by any permissible federal interest."
It's going to be nerve-wracking having the most conservative court in decades deciding the fate of our unions, but it looks like there is a swing vote on the court for this issue. It'll be a nailbiter, but it look like the case could go either way.
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