CLEVELAND, OH – Today, the Supreme Court of the United States struck down California’s Proposition 8, which defined marriage as a union between a man and a woman.
The court dismissed the case of Hollingsworth v. Perry, on the basis that the supporters of Proposition 8 lacked the legal standing to challenge an earlier court decision which declared it unconstitutional. As a result, the lower court decision is now the law of the land.
The ACLU filed multiple amicus briefs in this case, joining with numerous other civil rights and human rights groups to argue that discrimination based on sexual orientation is fundamentally unconstitutional.
“Today’s ruling is a major step forward for LGBT couples in California,” said Susan Becker, professor, Cleveland State University - Cleveland-Marshall College of Law and past-president of the ACLU of Ohio. “California has again joined the growing number of states where loving, committed same-sex couples can legally marry.”
For LGBT Ohioans, the battle for equality continues.
“Ohio and many other states still have discrimination written into their constitutions,” said ACLU of Ohio Executive Director Christine Link. “But the country is evolving quickly. Poll after poll shows a growing majority supports the freedom to marry. With the addition of California today, fully 30% of the American public now lives in a freedom-to-marry state, up from just 11% last October.”
“The ACLU has been working for full LGBT equality for decades,” added Link. “We will continue this important work, not only by pushing for marriage equality, but by fighting to eliminate the very real housing and employment discrimination that LGBT Ohioans face every day.
