California Strikes Down Gay Marriage Ban

In a much-anticipated ruling the California Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the the gay marriage ban law was in fact, unconstitutional. The law was enacted 4 years ago after much complaints towards the City of San Francisco after the Mayor temporarily allowed same-sex couples to wed, prompting a flood of applications to the city clerk’s office.

The first couple to wed then was 80-year-old Phyllis Lyon and 83-year-old Dorothy Martin, lovers for 50 years.

The law was quickly enacted and most of the same-sex marriage that had already taken place were denied their status.

Several Gays and Lesbian along with the city of San Francisco and gay rights groups, sued to overturn state laws allowing only marriages between a man and a woman.

“We have a right just like anyone else to get married to the person we want to get married to,” Lyon said at the time.

The ruling states that:
“There can be no doubt that extending the designation of marriage to same-sex couples, rather than denying it to all couples, is the equal protection remedy that is most consistent with our state’s general legislative policy and preference.”

It said that the state law’s language “limiting the designation of marriage to a ‘union between a man and a woman’ is unconstitutional, and that the remaining statutory language must be understood as making the designation of marriage available to both opposite-sex and same-sex couples.”

California will become the second state to allow gay marriage next to Massachusetts. Vermont, New Jersey, New Hampshire and Connecticut permit civil unions,

Seven other jurisdictions around the world have legalized same-sex marriage: Belgium, Netherlands, Spain, South Africa and the Canadian provinces of British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec.

Judith Dumont, Director of Administration for the Youth First Texas organization in Dallas said “Change is being made. We as a society are expanding our prospective in terms of alternative lifestyle. We are learning to embrace one another despite our differences.”

“However, we still have a long way to go. The work we do in community organization like YFT, HRC, and Lamda Legal can inspire people to care. I do we think we will see this change of acceptance in our life time,” said Dumont.

Tags:  Gay News
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