The decision of a Federal District Court judge in California today, declaring that Proposition 8 (denying gay men and women the right to marry) was unconstitutional, is a major victory for civil liberties and human rights! 🙂
This is not a question of religious belief! No one is forced to become a part of gay marriage! If you do not like two gays being married, you can have your view, but you don’t have the right to tell others who to marry!
Only 43 years ago, people of different races could not marry, until the Supreme Court declared it constitutional in 1967! Not everyone likes interracial marriage, but who cares? It is NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS who marries whom, as long as they are consenting adults!
Prejudice and hate and narrow mindedness must not be allowed to deny a group of Americans, estimated at 3 to 10 percent, the rights that the rest of us have! This is not something that should be based on a vote of the people, as the people can be wrong, as they have often been, and are not entitled to deny other people their basic human rights!
Of course, this is only the beginning, as the decision will be appealed to the Federal Circuit Courts, and ultimately is likely to go to the Supreme Court!
No one knows how the Supreme Court would rule, but the odds seem good that Justice Anthony Kennedy, who was the decisive vote in the gay rights case of Lawrence V. Texas might side with four other Justices thought likely to back gay marriage–Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor, Ruth Bader Ginsberg, and Stephen Breyer!
Additionally, there are hints that Justice Antonin Scalia, despite his anger at the Lawrence V. Texas decision, has stated that there is no compelling state interest in interfering with the right of marriage, so who knows? He just might be on the side of the right of gays to marry, when the case comes to the Supreme Court!
So we just might be seeing a 6-3 decision by the Supreme Court, making this the last basic human rights issue to be decided by the Supreme Court!
Conservatives who oppose this basic human right, and religious zealots who preach hate and prejudice, are going to be seen in the future as part of the dustbin of history, as once again, being on the wrong side of the concept of human rights!
In reading the decision, the judge seems to be writing his opinion directed at the supreme court. It is one of the best reasoned decisions I’ve perused over the years anticipating most major arguments against it. It’ll be very tough to overturn but I think it’s a reach to think Scalia will vote for it. I predict he’ll vote against it but we may be surprised who does vote for it from the conservative faction on the court. You may still be right with the 6-3 decision but I don’t see Scalia supporting.