the events on Capitol Hill of June 2015
will surely go down as some of the most
significant civil rights moments of this
generation welcome to watchmojo.com down
10 crucial facts you should know about
same-sex marriage laws in the United
States number 10
when did the issue of same-sex marriage
begin United States same-sex marriage
issues were first brought under
significant scrutiny during the 1950’s
but the push for change truly gathered
pace in the 70s delivery of the August
1953 edition of one magazine was delayed
by the post office amid concerns that
its front cover headline questioned
homosexual marriage was radical to the
point of obscenity the post office would
then take major qualms with the October
1954 edition featuring lesbian fiction
entitled Sappho remembered subsequently
refusing to deliver one magazine at all
one went all the way to the top until
the Supreme Court ruled in one ink V
Olson that homosexual writings could not
be banned for mailing under the guise of
obscenity same-sex marriage continued as
a controversial idea for over a decade
until a string of high-profile court
cases gave the issue even greater
emphasis 1970s Baker V Nelson in 1973 s
Jones V Hallahan heaped perhaps the most
pressure onto US lawmakers despite
neither case resulting in a positive
ruling for the homosexual cause with the
Kentucky Court of Appeals claiming in
the latter that the lesbian relationship
proposed was not a marriage number nine
when did the first legal same-sex
marriage occur in the United States
resistance against same-sex marriage
continued throughout America for the
rest of the 20th century and into the
21st before the first major victory for
the homosexual cause was enjoyed in the
state of Massachusetts on May 17 2004
the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
ruled in Goodridge V the depart
of public health that to only allow
opposite sex couples to marry was
unconstitutional within the state laws
establishing itself as the only sixth
jurisdiction worldwide to legalize
same-sex marriage behind the Netherlands
Belgium and the Canadian provinces of
Ontario British Columbia and Quebec the
actual ceremonies began happening the
very same day with couples lining up
from midnight to obtain their marriage
licenses
Tanya McCluskey and Marcia kadish are
regarded as the first to Wed having been
together for 18 years previously they
tied the knot in the city of Cambridge
at 9:15 a.m. in the week that followed
almost 2,500 same-sex couples applied
for licenses in Massachusetts as over
150 couples had travelled in from other
states number eight who opposes same-sex
marriage in terms of political
opposition the Republicans are America’s
major political party that is providing
the most resistance to same-sex marriage
in recent history George W Bush the last
Republican president as of July 2015
went on record on several occasions
during his time in office to declare an
anti same-sex marriage stands like on
gay marriage I’m going to stand up as
head on support gay marriage I support
marriage between men and women in fact
in February 2004 Bush actually announced
his support for a constitutional
amendment that would have actively
banned same-sex marriage 2015 s ruling
that same-sex couples can marry
nationwide was by no means a landslide
victory however and opposition to the
movement still remains the five to four
ruling shows how close the Capitol’s
decision was with Justice Anthony
Kennedy proving to be the crucial
majority vote conservative justices
Samuel Alito Antonin Scalia Clarence
Thomas and Chief Justice John Roberts
wrote separate opinions varying their
degrees of opposition to the bill
Alito offered some of the clearest cut
arguments claiming quote today’s
decision usurped the constitutional
right of the people to decide whether to
keep or alter the traditional
understanding of marriage while Chief
Justice Roberts said the majority
opinion was quote an act
of will not legal judgment many strongly
religious organizations ranging from
Christian to Jewish to Muslim and beyond
also oppose same-sex marriage in the
United States
number seven who supports same-sex
marriage for the for against the 2015
legislation however there were five in
favor of it justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Stephen Breyer Sonia Sotomayor and Elena
Kagan joined the after mentioned Anthony
Kennedy in support of same-sex marriage
quote no longer may this Liberty be
denied said Kennedy of the issue
describing marriage as a quote keystone
of America’s social order before
underlining that the homosexual
community could now enjoy quote equal
dignity in the eyes of the law lead
plaintiff in the historic ruling Jim
obergefell who was seeking recognition
as the surviving spouse on the death
certificate of his late husband John
Arthur also received direct support from
some of the nation’s leading politicians
most notably taking a congratulatory
phone call from President Barack Obama
shortly after the ruling was made Obama
said that obergefell ‘s leadership had
quote changed the country before
summarizing his thoughts during a Rose
Garden speech later that same day
hailing the decision as a quote victory
for America in addition to many LGBT
movements other supporters of same-sex
marriage throughout the years have also
included members of the Democratic
libertarian and green parties number six
what is the Defense of Marriage Act in
short the Defense of Marriage Act is a
piece of legislation that’s now been
entirely overturned by the Supreme Court
enacted September 21st 1996 DOMA defined
marriage as the union of one man and one
woman at the federal level allowing
States to refuse not only to recognize
same-sex marriages if they so choose but
also to refuse same-sex marriages the
benefits enjoyed by heterosexual unions
DOMA which was controversially signed by
Democratic President Bill Clinton also
define the word spouse as a person of
the opposite sex who is a husband or
wife section 3 of the law was famously
overturned
in 2013 with the landmark United States
v Windsor in this civil rights case
Edith Windsor fought to have DOMA
reviewed as unconstitutional following
the death of her partner Thea Spyer and
the subsequent realization that she
would not be recognized as a spouse
which meant she also wouldn’t be
eligible for a state tax exemption and
was therefore compelled to pay over
three hundred and fifty thousand dollars
to the IRS that has been ruled
unconstitutional by Supreme Court
Justice Anthony Kennedy writing for the
court the Supreme Court ruled in favor
of Windsor and following 2015 s ruling
on obergefell V Hodges the remainder of
the Act is now deemed entirely
unconstitutional number five what is the
US public’s opinion opinion polls
indicate that the five to four Supreme
Court ruling is a fair reflection of US
public opinion in general since 2010
national polls have consistently shown
majority support for same-sex marriage
with many votes creeping closer towards
60% by 2015 an August 2010 opinion poll
conducted by CNN showed that 49 percent
of voters believed that gay and lesbian
couples have the constitutional right to
marry while 51 percent believed they
should not those figures had increased
by July 2013 when a USA Today poll found
that 55% of Americans supported same-sex
marriage while 40 percent did not
finally a human rights campaign poll
held in February 2015 a few months
before the obergefell ruling found that
60% of Americans favored same-sex
marriage with only 37 against it number
4 what was the Supreme Court’s decision
what happened on June 26th 2015 will
likely be remembered as a clear landmark
day in the history of American civil
rights the five-to-four decision made by
the Supreme Court in favor of same-sex
marriages has enabled gay and lesbian
couples to obtain a marriage license in
any state and have their Union
recognized on an equal level with
heterosexual partnerships throughout
America drawing significantly upon the
Constitution’s 14th amendment
in particular its Equal Protection
Clause swing voter Justice Kennedy wrote
that previously quote challenged laws
burden the liberty of same-sex couples
and it must be further acknowledged that
they abridge central precepts of
equality the decision to legalize
same-sex marriage nationwide also means
that there is no longer a variance
between state laws something that if
left unchanged Kennedy believes would
have quote promoted instability and
uncertainty
number three what was the dissenting
opinion and now I fear for my country
this is a spit in God’s face dissenting
opinion drew upon the traditional view
of marriage as something held between a
man and a woman and upon the argument
that the June 26th 2015 ruling was
actually less democratic than one might
immediately think Chief Justice John
Roberts wrote that quote stealing this
issue from the people well for many cast
a cloud over same-sex marriage making a
dramatic social change that much more
difficult to accept essentially Roberts
is worried that in legalizing same-sex
marriage throughout America the Supreme
Court may have quote stepped on the toes
of those states that were yet to
legalize it independently damaging
America’s Democratic fundamentals in
doing so and potentially paving the way
for future protests as a result in
relation justice Alito’s concern is that
the ruling quote will be used to vilify
Americans who are unwilling to assent to
the new orthodoxy therefore creating a
politically tenser environment than that
which had already existed number two
what was the case based on while history
will likely remember the Supreme Court
case title with most prominence
obergefell V Hodges was based upon more
than just Jim obergefell ‘s personal
claim there were actually several
significant cases encompassing some
thirty plaintiffs that ultimately
decided the ruling which were merged
together to apply greater pressure and
urgency on to the court de Bourgh V
Snyder is a 2012 lawsuit filed in
Michigan by a lesbian couple that found
themselves unable to jointly adopt their
three children because of the state’s
ban on same-sex marriages tanco V Haslam
is a 2013 lawsuit filed in Tennessee
on behalf of three same-sex couples that
had been legally married elsewhere in
America but found that the state would
not recognize their marriages work V
Beshear is a 2013 lawsuit filed by a
same-sex couple married in Ontario and
living in Kentucky where their union was
not legally recognized and finally love
v Beshear is Bork’s companion case filed
after two same-sex couples were denied
marriage licenses in Kentucky in 2014
these cases were merged with obergefell
a move that resulted in the historic
ruling of June 2015
number one what does this mean for gay
rights going forward
recent events will likely have
significant bearing internationally as
well but domestically the focus will now
shift to how exactly the new legislation
is implemented across the country the
conservative dissenters voting in the
Supreme Court fear that those Americans
who are anti same-sex marriage will now
face difficulties in voicing their
alternative opinion and that various
conflicts between religious belief and
national law could arise in turn it may
yet prove difficult for same-sex
marriages to become socially accepted in
some communities even if they are legal
the challenge ahead seems very much a
balancing act however in terms of the
LGBT community itself the recent ruling
is a massive step forward for gay rights
before obergefell V Hodges 13 US states
had continued to ban same-sex marriage
and there had been uncertainty in
recognizing it after obergefell V Hodges
every jurisdiction in the USA is now
compelled to allow same-sex marriages
and to equally recognize them speaking
shortly after the ruling lead plaintiff
obergefell voiced his hope that quote
the term gay marriage will soon be a
thing of the past that from this day
forward it will simply be marriage and
that America quote will be better off
because of it going forward the notion
is likely to dominate as gay and lesbian
couples look for seamless integration
that asks for no special treatment only
simple equality did these facts surprise
you to vote for which new story is
covered next
head over to watchmojo.com slash
suggests
and be sure to hit that subscribe button
for more newsworthy top 10s published
every week
will surely go down as some of the most
significant civil rights moments of this
generation welcome to watchmojo.com down
10 crucial facts you should know about
same-sex marriage laws in the United
States number 10
when did the issue of same-sex marriage
begin United States same-sex marriage
issues were first brought under
significant scrutiny during the 1950’s
but the push for change truly gathered
pace in the 70s delivery of the August
1953 edition of one magazine was delayed
by the post office amid concerns that
its front cover headline questioned
homosexual marriage was radical to the
point of obscenity the post office would
then take major qualms with the October
1954 edition featuring lesbian fiction
entitled Sappho remembered subsequently
refusing to deliver one magazine at all
one went all the way to the top until
the Supreme Court ruled in one ink V
Olson that homosexual writings could not
be banned for mailing under the guise of
obscenity same-sex marriage continued as
a controversial idea for over a decade
until a string of high-profile court
cases gave the issue even greater
emphasis 1970s Baker V Nelson in 1973 s
Jones V Hallahan heaped perhaps the most
pressure onto US lawmakers despite
neither case resulting in a positive
ruling for the homosexual cause with the
Kentucky Court of Appeals claiming in
the latter that the lesbian relationship
proposed was not a marriage number nine
when did the first legal same-sex
marriage occur in the United States
resistance against same-sex marriage
continued throughout America for the
rest of the 20th century and into the
21st before the first major victory for
the homosexual cause was enjoyed in the
state of Massachusetts on May 17 2004
the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
ruled in Goodridge V the depart
of public health that to only allow
opposite sex couples to marry was
unconstitutional within the state laws
establishing itself as the only sixth
jurisdiction worldwide to legalize
same-sex marriage behind the Netherlands
Belgium and the Canadian provinces of
Ontario British Columbia and Quebec the
actual ceremonies began happening the
very same day with couples lining up
from midnight to obtain their marriage
licenses
Tanya McCluskey and Marcia kadish are
regarded as the first to Wed having been
together for 18 years previously they
tied the knot in the city of Cambridge
at 9:15 a.m. in the week that followed
almost 2,500 same-sex couples applied
for licenses in Massachusetts as over
150 couples had travelled in from other
states number eight who opposes same-sex
marriage in terms of political
opposition the Republicans are America’s
major political party that is providing
the most resistance to same-sex marriage
in recent history George W Bush the last
Republican president as of July 2015
went on record on several occasions
during his time in office to declare an
anti same-sex marriage stands like on
gay marriage I’m going to stand up as
head on support gay marriage I support
marriage between men and women in fact
in February 2004 Bush actually announced
his support for a constitutional
amendment that would have actively
banned same-sex marriage 2015 s ruling
that same-sex couples can marry
nationwide was by no means a landslide
victory however and opposition to the
movement still remains the five to four
ruling shows how close the Capitol’s
decision was with Justice Anthony
Kennedy proving to be the crucial
majority vote conservative justices
Samuel Alito Antonin Scalia Clarence
Thomas and Chief Justice John Roberts
wrote separate opinions varying their
degrees of opposition to the bill
Alito offered some of the clearest cut
arguments claiming quote today’s
decision usurped the constitutional
right of the people to decide whether to
keep or alter the traditional
understanding of marriage while Chief
Justice Roberts said the majority
opinion was quote an act
of will not legal judgment many strongly
religious organizations ranging from
Christian to Jewish to Muslim and beyond
also oppose same-sex marriage in the
United States
number seven who supports same-sex
marriage for the for against the 2015
legislation however there were five in
favor of it justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Stephen Breyer Sonia Sotomayor and Elena
Kagan joined the after mentioned Anthony
Kennedy in support of same-sex marriage
quote no longer may this Liberty be
denied said Kennedy of the issue
describing marriage as a quote keystone
of America’s social order before
underlining that the homosexual
community could now enjoy quote equal
dignity in the eyes of the law lead
plaintiff in the historic ruling Jim
obergefell who was seeking recognition
as the surviving spouse on the death
certificate of his late husband John
Arthur also received direct support from
some of the nation’s leading politicians
most notably taking a congratulatory
phone call from President Barack Obama
shortly after the ruling was made Obama
said that obergefell ‘s leadership had
quote changed the country before
summarizing his thoughts during a Rose
Garden speech later that same day
hailing the decision as a quote victory
for America in addition to many LGBT
movements other supporters of same-sex
marriage throughout the years have also
included members of the Democratic
libertarian and green parties number six
what is the Defense of Marriage Act in
short the Defense of Marriage Act is a
piece of legislation that’s now been
entirely overturned by the Supreme Court
enacted September 21st 1996 DOMA defined
marriage as the union of one man and one
woman at the federal level allowing
States to refuse not only to recognize
same-sex marriages if they so choose but
also to refuse same-sex marriages the
benefits enjoyed by heterosexual unions
DOMA which was controversially signed by
Democratic President Bill Clinton also
define the word spouse as a person of
the opposite sex who is a husband or
wife section 3 of the law was famously
overturned
in 2013 with the landmark United States
v Windsor in this civil rights case
Edith Windsor fought to have DOMA
reviewed as unconstitutional following
the death of her partner Thea Spyer and
the subsequent realization that she
would not be recognized as a spouse
which meant she also wouldn’t be
eligible for a state tax exemption and
was therefore compelled to pay over
three hundred and fifty thousand dollars
to the IRS that has been ruled
unconstitutional by Supreme Court
Justice Anthony Kennedy writing for the
court the Supreme Court ruled in favor
of Windsor and following 2015 s ruling
on obergefell V Hodges the remainder of
the Act is now deemed entirely
unconstitutional number five what is the
US public’s opinion opinion polls
indicate that the five to four Supreme
Court ruling is a fair reflection of US
public opinion in general since 2010
national polls have consistently shown
majority support for same-sex marriage
with many votes creeping closer towards
60% by 2015 an August 2010 opinion poll
conducted by CNN showed that 49 percent
of voters believed that gay and lesbian
couples have the constitutional right to
marry while 51 percent believed they
should not those figures had increased
by July 2013 when a USA Today poll found
that 55% of Americans supported same-sex
marriage while 40 percent did not
finally a human rights campaign poll
held in February 2015 a few months
before the obergefell ruling found that
60% of Americans favored same-sex
marriage with only 37 against it number
4 what was the Supreme Court’s decision
what happened on June 26th 2015 will
likely be remembered as a clear landmark
day in the history of American civil
rights the five-to-four decision made by
the Supreme Court in favor of same-sex
marriages has enabled gay and lesbian
couples to obtain a marriage license in
any state and have their Union
recognized on an equal level with
heterosexual partnerships throughout
America drawing significantly upon the
Constitution’s 14th amendment
in particular its Equal Protection
Clause swing voter Justice Kennedy wrote
that previously quote challenged laws
burden the liberty of same-sex couples
and it must be further acknowledged that
they abridge central precepts of
equality the decision to legalize
same-sex marriage nationwide also means
that there is no longer a variance
between state laws something that if
left unchanged Kennedy believes would
have quote promoted instability and
uncertainty
number three what was the dissenting
opinion and now I fear for my country
this is a spit in God’s face dissenting
opinion drew upon the traditional view
of marriage as something held between a
man and a woman and upon the argument
that the June 26th 2015 ruling was
actually less democratic than one might
immediately think Chief Justice John
Roberts wrote that quote stealing this
issue from the people well for many cast
a cloud over same-sex marriage making a
dramatic social change that much more
difficult to accept essentially Roberts
is worried that in legalizing same-sex
marriage throughout America the Supreme
Court may have quote stepped on the toes
of those states that were yet to
legalize it independently damaging
America’s Democratic fundamentals in
doing so and potentially paving the way
for future protests as a result in
relation justice Alito’s concern is that
the ruling quote will be used to vilify
Americans who are unwilling to assent to
the new orthodoxy therefore creating a
politically tenser environment than that
which had already existed number two
what was the case based on while history
will likely remember the Supreme Court
case title with most prominence
obergefell V Hodges was based upon more
than just Jim obergefell ‘s personal
claim there were actually several
significant cases encompassing some
thirty plaintiffs that ultimately
decided the ruling which were merged
together to apply greater pressure and
urgency on to the court de Bourgh V
Snyder is a 2012 lawsuit filed in
Michigan by a lesbian couple that found
themselves unable to jointly adopt their
three children because of the state’s
ban on same-sex marriages tanco V Haslam
is a 2013 lawsuit filed in Tennessee
on behalf of three same-sex couples that
had been legally married elsewhere in
America but found that the state would
not recognize their marriages work V
Beshear is a 2013 lawsuit filed by a
same-sex couple married in Ontario and
living in Kentucky where their union was
not legally recognized and finally love
v Beshear is Bork’s companion case filed
after two same-sex couples were denied
marriage licenses in Kentucky in 2014
these cases were merged with obergefell
a move that resulted in the historic
ruling of June 2015
number one what does this mean for gay
rights going forward
recent events will likely have
significant bearing internationally as
well but domestically the focus will now
shift to how exactly the new legislation
is implemented across the country the
conservative dissenters voting in the
Supreme Court fear that those Americans
who are anti same-sex marriage will now
face difficulties in voicing their
alternative opinion and that various
conflicts between religious belief and
national law could arise in turn it may
yet prove difficult for same-sex
marriages to become socially accepted in
some communities even if they are legal
the challenge ahead seems very much a
balancing act however in terms of the
LGBT community itself the recent ruling
is a massive step forward for gay rights
before obergefell V Hodges 13 US states
had continued to ban same-sex marriage
and there had been uncertainty in
recognizing it after obergefell V Hodges
every jurisdiction in the USA is now
compelled to allow same-sex marriages
and to equally recognize them speaking
shortly after the ruling lead plaintiff
obergefell voiced his hope that quote
the term gay marriage will soon be a
thing of the past that from this day
forward it will simply be marriage and
that America quote will be better off
because of it going forward the notion
is likely to dominate as gay and lesbian
couples look for seamless integration
that asks for no special treatment only
simple equality did these facts surprise
you to vote for which new story is
covered next
head over to watchmojo.com slash
suggests
and be sure to hit that subscribe button
for more newsworthy top 10s published
every week
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