Article: LGBTQ/Civil Rights
Source: NYT
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/us/politics/same-sex-marriage-timeline.html?ref=politics#/#time255_7528
Same-Sex Marriage: Landmark Decisions and Precedents
Mildred and Richard Loving in 1967 after the Supreme Court struck down the Virginia law that prohibited interracial marriage.United Press International
Loving v. Virginia
Mildred Jeter, an African-American woman, and Richard Loving, a white man, were indicted in 1958 for violating Virgina’s ban on interracial marriages after they got married in the District of Columbia and then returned to Virginia. They brought their case before the Supreme Court, which decided that Virginia's anti-miscegenation laws could not stand consistently with the Fourteenth Amendment.
Mike McConnell, left, and Jack Baker (born Richard John Baker) were denied a Hennepin County marriage license in Minneapolis on May 18, 1970.R. Bertraine Heine/Minnesota Historical Society, via Associated Press
Baker v. Nelson
In 1970, Richard Baker, a student at the University of Minnesota, where he was a prominent gay-rights activist, filed a lawsuit after a Minneapolis court clerk denied him and his partner, James Michael McConnell, a marriage license. They lost. They appealed to the Supreme Court on the grounds that they were deprived of their due process, equal protection and privacy rights. The court dismissed the appeal, but the case has been cited in arguments against awarding federal benefits to same-sex couples.
Bowers v. Hardwick
The Supreme Court ruled that a Georgia statute criminalizing sodomy was constitutional, a decision that was overturned in 2003. The opinion, written by Justice Byron R. White, stated that the right to engage in sodomy was not rooted in tradition and the courts should be cautious about extending the due process clause to cover it. In a dissenting opinion, Justice Harry A. Blackmun wrote, “A necessary corollary of giving individuals freedom to choose how to conduct their lives is acceptance of the fact that different individuals will make different choices.”
Protesters marched in Denver on Nov. 4, 1992, after voters approved Amendment 2.David Zalubowski/Associated Press
Romer v. Evans
The Supreme Court struck down Amendment 2, a provision of the Colorado Constitution that would prevent homosexuals from being placed in a protected class. Groups in a protected class are guarded from discrimination under the law based on characteristics such as race, ethnicity or religion. Amendment 2 was originally approved by Colorado voters in 1992.
Ninia Baehr, left, and Genora Dancel, plaintiffs in Baehr v. Miike, in 1996.Serge J.F. Levy/Associated Press
Baehr v. Miike
The case, which began in 1990, questioned whether the denial of marriage licenses to three homosexual couples in Hawaii amounted to discrimination, and it seemed then that Hawaii could become the first state to legalize same-sex marriage. As the case progressed, at least 30 states passed legislation banning gay marriages and Congress passed the Defense of Marriage Act in 1996. The Hawaii Supreme Court eventually ruled the case moot by a 1998 amendment to the state constitution that barred such marriages.
Three couples who challenged Vermont's marriage laws watched arguments at the state Supreme Court in Montpelier, Vt., on Nov. 18, 1998. Toby Talbot/Associated Press
Baker v. Vermont
Nina Beck and Stacy Jolles, along with two other same-sex couples, filed a lawsuit seeking the same benefits as heterosexual couples. The Vermont Supreme Court, in an opinion written by Chief Justice Jeffrey L. Amestoy, ruled to "extend to same-sex couples the common benefits and protections that flow from marriage under Vermont law." Vermont's legislature approved civil unions in 2000 and legalized same-sex marriage in 2009.
John Lawrence, left, with Tyron Garner in Houston in 1998.Associated Press
Lawrence v. Texas
John Lawrence was arrested on Sept. 17, 1998 by the Houston police for engaging in a consensual sex act with another man, Tyron Garner. In reviewing Mr. Lawrence’s case, the Supreme Court overturned its 1986 decision in Bowers v. Hardwick, ruling that state laws banning homosexual sodomy were unconstitutional because they denied people of their right to privacy.
From left in the front row, the plaintiffs, Julie Goodridge, Hillary Goodridge, Linda Davies and Gloria Bailey, and from left in the second row, Heidi Norton, Gina Smith, Gary Chalmers and Richard Linnell listened to arguments on their challenge to Massachusetts's ban on gay marriage in Boston in March 4, 2003.Pool photo by Julia Malakie
Goodridge v. Department of Public Health
In 2001, Hillary and Julie Goodridge, along with a number of other same-sex couples, were denied marriage licenses by the Massachusetts Department of Health. The couples sued, but a judge sided with the state. They appealed to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, and Massachusetts became the first state to allow same-sex couples to marry on the basis of equality.
Hernandez v. Robles
New York's Court of Appeals rejected a broad attempt by gay and lesbian couples across the state to win the right to marry, ruling that denying marriage to same-sex couples did not violate the State Constitution. By a 4-2 majority, the ruling said that the State Legislature, in laws dating back nearly 100 years, intended to limit marriage to a union between a man and a woman, and had a rational basis for doing so. It further argued that children did best with a mother and father in the home.
Cindy Meneghin, right, and her partner, Maureen Kilian, with their daughter, Sarah, awaited the New Jersey Supreme Court’s decision on gay marriage on Oct. 25, 2006.Ruth Fremson/The New York Times
Lewis v. Harris
Seven same-sex couples appealed to the New Jersey Supreme Court, saying state statutes that denied them marriage licenses were unconstitutional. The court ruled that same-sex couples should have the same rights and benefits as heterosexual couples, but that the state did not necessarily have to refer to it as "marriage." The New Jersey Legislature voted to allow civil unions in December 2006.
- The Opinion
Back Story With The Times's Adam Liptak
Mayor Gavin Newsom of San Francisco spoke during a news conference following a state Supreme Court decision to overturn the ban on same-sex marriage on May 15, 2008. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
In re Marriage Cases
The California Supreme Court, in a 4-3 decision, struck down two state laws that had limited marriages to unions between a man and a woman, and ruled that same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry. The decision made California the second state to allow same-sex marriage.
Reaction to Gay Marriage Ruling
Mike Boone, of Ankeny, Iowa, stood with his wife, Joni, during a prayer at a rally against gay marriage on April 9, 2009, at the Capitol building in Des Moines.Charlie Neibergall/Associated Press
Varnum v. Brien
In a unanimous decision, the Iowa Supreme Court made gay marriage legal when it ruled that the state's limitations on same-sex couples violated the equal protection clause of the Constitution. The case resolved a lawsuit brought by six same-sex couples who were denied marriage licenses.
Wendy Kennedy, left, embraced her spouse Deborah Spell at the Stonewall Inn in New York after the Supreme Court stuck down the Defense of Marriage Act. Ozier Muhammad/The New York Times
Hollingsworth v. Perry and United States v. Windsor
In a major victory for the gay rights movement, the Supreme Court ruled that married gay and lesbian couples are entitled to federal benefits. A second decision declined to say whether there is a constitutional right to same-sex marriage. Instead, the justices said that a case concerning California’s ban on same-sex marriage, Proposition 8, was not properly before them. The ruling leaves in place laws banning same-sex marriage around the nation. Its consequences for California were not immediately clear, but many legal analysts say that same-sex marriages are likely to resume there in a matter of weeks.
- The Opinion: United States v. Windsor
- The Opinion: Hollingsworth v. Perry
Sizing Up the Court's Marriage Ruling
- Supreme Court Bolsters Gay Marriage With Two Major Rulings
- As Rulings Are Announced, Cheers and Tears Among Waiting Crowd
No comments:
Post a Comment