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Vol. 79/No. 24 July 13, 2015
Court strikes down
discriminatory marriage laws
Shelby Tauber/Austin American-Statesman/AP Photo
Celebrations broke out across the country, including in Austin, Texas,
above, on June 26 after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down all state
laws barring same-sex marriage. The court’s 5-4 decision was based on
the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which guarantees equal
protection and due process under the law. The decision also cited the
1967 Loving v. Virginia Supreme Court ruling that struck down bans on
interracial marriage.
The ruling reflects rapidly changing attitudes among working people and
others against discriminatory marriage laws that deny equal civil rights
to gay couples, as well as widespread opposition to government intrusion
into individuals’ private lives. And it advances the fight by the
working class against all forms of discrimination.
It was just two years ago that the high court ruled the 1996 Defense of
Marriage Act unconstitutional because it denied spousal benefits to
same-sex couples in the 12 states where their marriages were held to be
legal. By the time of the latest Supreme Court decision gay marriage had
been legalized in 36 states, encompassing more than 70 percent of the
U.S. population.
— BRIAN WILLIAMS
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