California Supreme Court rules state ban on gay marriage is unconstitutional

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California, temporarily at least, became the second state in the U.S. to recognize gay marriage.

The lawsuit came about after San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom ordered his city hall clerk to change the application to read simply the gender neutral applicant one and applicant two. Word got out, and a rainy March of 2004 became a month of essentially non-stop weddings by same sex couples at the city hall.

California's state legislature has twice passed bills legalizing same sex marriage and overturning the Defense of Marriage Act, a law passed by voters at the ballot box in the form of Proposition 22. Governor Schwazenegger vetoed both, saying he wanted the courts to weigh in on the issue, but that he respects the will of the voters and the decision by the courts.

Both sides have said they are expecting the case to be appealed to the US Supreme Court, which has never addressed the question of same sex marriage.
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Tori
  • added May 15, 2008

75 comments // California Supreme Court rules state ban on gay marriage is unconstitutional

  •  

    Awesome. I was reading in to how Arnold said he wanted to have the courts decide. I guess it finally got to that point.

    Greg_Bunker
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    Love is love, whether with an object or a person, you cant sit there and tell a person what he can and cant love.

    dmass5
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    This is great news. However, I expect that this rulling will be used as a means of turning the general elections into a "values" issue.

    currenton
  •  

    Today is a day I will never forget.

    It is with unimaginable joy that I write to tell you that the California Supreme Court just ruled in our favor, declaring that each of us has the freedom to marry the person we love.

    This is a landmark victory for our community. It's a victory for fairness and justice. And it's an incredible victory for California land of opportunity. For 10 years, Equality California has worked tirelessly to bring us to this moment. Today, for the first time in history, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Californians are truly equal. It is an amazing feeling.

    I wish we could simply celebrate and enjoy this incredible victory.

    But the truth is, this is just the beginning of the fight of our lives. Anti-LGBT hate organizations are already hard at work trying to pass a constitutional amendment this November in an attempt to take away our freedom to marry. And they have already raised millions of dollars to fund their discriminatory effort.

    We can't let that happen. We won't let that happen.

    It will take all of us to keep this victory. Make a contribution today to help preserve the freedom to marry from this vicious attack. Every dollar you donate will be used to fight this initiative.

    Equality California Issues PAC is with a coalition of organizations working to defeat this initiative. Your donation today will help us buy media time and hire more field organizers across the state to mobilize the thousands of volunteers who have already gathered more than 76,000 signatures opposing the initiative.

    Today's victory proves that by working together we can achieve equality.

    Our win today would not have been possible without the generous commitment and steadfast support of our thousands of volunteers and donors. And I cannot say enough about the brilliant legal team representing EQCA as a plaintiff in the case: National Center for Lesbian Rights, Lambda Legal, ACLU, Heller Ehrman and the Law Office of David C. Codell.

    Help us keep marriage in California by making a donation today to fight the ballot initiative. As a united force, we will forever have equality in our state.

    Once again, thank you for supporting EQCA in the fight for equality. I have never been more proud to be a part of this community. I have never been more proud to be a Californian.

    Warmly,

    Geoff Kors
    Executive Director
    Equality California

    jade_azul16
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    LIBERTY! Nice job California!

    Hawkmang
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    It's astonishing to me that same sex marriage is still an issue in many Western countries. It's 2008 - can we get past fundamentalist religion and concentrate more effort and money on real issues, like poverty, please?

    goettel
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    For those interested in reading the opinion, it is fair and well written. Click on the Opinion link under the header Marriage Cases for a downloadable PDF.

    I am proud of my chosen "home" state today. I covered the events in March 2004 extensively for the radio station I worked for at the time, and am thrilled the courts reached what I firmly believe is the right decision.

    Tori
  •  

    This is amazing. When I first heard it I started jumping around and I'm still smiling right now. Wow. I don't know what else to say to express my joy over what my home state has done.

    Yoshi1
  •  

    like the beatles song says "All you need is love...love is all you need"

    muckraker
  •  

    AWWWSOME!!!

    jogglef
  •  

    This is a major step towards Gay Marriage becoming legal in all states. History was made today.

  •  

    I can hear this sunday's sermon already "BEWARE! BEWARE! THE LORD WILL TURN HIS BACK ON US FOR OUR LASCIVIOUS WAYS!!! HE SHOWED NO MERCY ON SODOM AND WILL SURELY NOT SPARE US!!!"

  •  

    Fantastic! Today is a great day for California.

    sgwhites
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    Conservatives say they want less government when it comes to money and church and when it seems to benefit them and real property. Yet they want to impose their ideological views and control other peoples lives via data and abortion etc. They are hypocritical and contradictory to say the least. I try to understand their reasoning, but am baffled by it. It seems to be taking forever for them to understand what humanism means. It's almost like they lack the ability to imagine themselves in someone elses shoes. They, more than any others, care less about the consequences of their actions which is similar to sociopathic behavior, in my humble opinion and I bet that if studies were done between the left and right far more righties would tend to be sociopaths. But anyway, back to the congratulations--
    ..Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of hapiness for ALL!!Way to go California!!!!

    menmykoko
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    Why do people care so much if gay people get married? How does it in any way shape or form affect your life? They will still be gay wether they are married or not, they will still love together, nothing will change about them. Get over yourself and understand that love doesn't pertain to just man to woman. One day we will all realize just how stupid this whole debate is, until then, those of you who agree with this, you are idiots

    alman365
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    I am in love with California right now. I'm so glad I moved back here! When is it New York's turn?

    dnguyen
  •  

    Finally one more state in the US to allow equal rights and gay marriage.

    aharvath
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    As a Christian, I can not approve of the Gay lifestyle. But I don't see the point in trying to stop gay CIVIL UNIONS.

    It doesnt affect me , and if it means less money in Insurance companies pockets, then so be it.

    chillwillNJ
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    Way to go, CA. It's about time.

    Taigster
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    Alman 365-----Because, and i'll refrain from calling you an idiot as you have done, reluctantly, there are about 1000 legal rights and benefits that are not available without marriage.

    It's just like "taxation without representation". Why should we pay the same taxes as everone else and not reap the same benefits.

    Tax Churches Now!

    menmykoko
  •  

    "...As a Christian, I can not approve of the Gay lifestyle. But I don't see the point in trying to stop gay CIVIL UNIONS..."

    As a Christian heterosexual, this law of the land neither affects you, nor solicits your approval or sanction. Get a grip, bruh.

    And, I agree with you on legalizing civil unions, which help out more than the GLBT community. Few can afford to live alone or on a single income. Yet, when it is discovered that you're getting a nickel's worth of help from anywhere, the government penalizes you. They will bail out major banks and greedy financial institutions, but not tax-paying citizens struggling to eat, buy gas to get to work, and maintain shelter.

    96thdayofrage
  •  

    Should we expect a hurricane now?

  •  

    Great. Equal rights for all.

    TouchArt
  •  

    Hurricanes and disasterous Acts of GOD seem to only be striking in the red states that supported Dumya's ascent from hell into the Oval Office, Stephen.

    96thdayofrage
  •  

    Thank you California!

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