After a watchful eye from the GLBT community, the Wisconsin Supreme Court has upheld the state’s constitutional ban on gay marriage and civil unions. It is disappointing but no surprise.
The ruling was 7-0 from the judges. Wednesday, they ruled that the 2006 constitutional amendment was properly put to voters in a statewide referendum.
The suit was filed that the 2006 amendment violated a rule that limits referendum questions to a single subject to be voted on. The lawsuit, filed by a voter opposed to the amendment, argued that gay marriage and civil unions were two different subjects and not a constituting as a single subject.
Justice Gableman says both subjects “carry out the same general purpose of preserving the legal status of marriage in Wisconsin as between only one man and one woman.”
University of California, Davis law professor Vikram Amar told WSJ that he would be “quite surprised” if Judge Vaughn Walker didn’t rule that Prop 8 is unconstitutional.
Final statements were heard this week in the California federal trial of Proposition 8, banning same-sex marriage. Walker questioned the argument that marriage is aimed at serving society’s importance in procreation.
The judge asked Ted Olson, who represents the two same-sex couples, why domestic partnerships aren’t sufficient. Mr. Olson responded with testimony from gay and lesbian witnesses describing the humiliation they felt by not being allowed to marry.
However Judge Walker rules, the case is likely headed for the 9th Circuit and then the Supreme Court.
(For more information on closing arguments, check these articles on NYT, WSJ, and LAT.)
Perry v. Schwarzenegger, which is currently before a federal district court in California but is likely to be appealed all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, is the case to repeal Proposition 8 in California. The Perry case has scheduled closing arguments for next Wednesday. The case was taken to court by two couples, Kris Perry and Sandy Stier and their four children, and Paul Katami and Jeff Zarrillo. These couples are asking for equal marriage rights, which are granted to every other American family. Their rights are blocked from obtaining marriage licenses under California’s Proposition 8.
“We have come together in a nonpartisan fashion because the principle of equality before the law transcends the left-right divide and cuts to the core of our nation’s character. This is not about politics; it’s about an indispensable right vested in all Americans,” stated the advisory board of the American Foundation for Equal Rights, a supporter of the Perry case.
American courts have ruled on issues such as marriage since their forming. When the court faced the subject of interracial marriage, a Gallup poll stated that 74 percent of Americans disapproved, yet the courts voted for equality. A recent same-sex marriage poll showed 47 percent of people support same-sex marriage. The odds for equality are set much better and the uphill battle from the public is less resistant than for interracial marriage.
“Among individuals ages 18 to 29, an estimated 65 percent support marriage equality. Our history will soon be written by young people who are seizing the reins from the baby boomers’…. As the country evolved the meaning of one small word — “all” — has evolved as well,” stated Robert A. Levy, co-chair of the advisory board of the American Foundation for Equal Rights.
Gay and Lesbian federal workers can begin applying for same-sex benefits in July. The Office of Personal Management said that President Obama signed a memo that extends some benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees.
Benefits will now be offered to same-sex domestic partners of eligible federal workers, U.S. Postal workers and federal retirees. The Office of Personal Management will not extend access to opposite-sex domestic partners, because they can obtain the insurance through marriage, “an option not currently available to same-sex domestic partners,” the agency wrote in Tuesday’s Federal Register.
All same-sex couples must still apply but will not be asked to submit formal documentation of their domestic partnership. Same-sex partners will be asked the same set of health questions as married couples and no one is automatically guaranteed coverage.
