A Historic Date

“Love is love.”

In a message this morning on Twitter, U.S. President Barack Obama said he is satisfied with the Supreme Court’s decision to reject the traditional definition of marriage.

Defenders of gay rights in the United States obtained two major victories.

In a close decision (5 to 4), the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act, the federal law defining marriage as the union between a man and a woman. Even former President Bill Clinton, who supported this law in 1996, said this past March that he wanted to see the Supreme Court overturn this provision.

As a result, the federal government must recognize same-sex couples married in states where this union has been legalized. They will enjoy the same federal benefits granted to heterosexual couples. Conservative Fox News commentator Sally Kohn argued that this was a victory for the American states so that they can have equality and freedom in establishing their own laws and regulations without worrying about Washington sticking its nose where it does not belong.

After an interruption of five years, gay marriage will once again be celebrated in California.

Ironically, while the state of California and the city of San Francisco have always been at the forefront in the struggle for gay rights, California has been one of the states that do not recognize same-sex unions. A referendum held in 2008 (Proposition 8) overthrew the legalization of marriages that had been passed six months earlier. Today’s decision — we’ll spare you the legal language, but it can be read here — invalidates Proposition 8 and allows the state to resume issuing marriage certificates for same-sex couples. According to Governor Jerry Brown, same-sex couples will be allowed to marry and be given marriage certificates as soon as possible.

With California now on the list of states where gay marriage is legal, about one-third of Americans now reside in states where such unions are recognized. The decisions of the Supreme Court, however, change nothing for states that have not legalized same-sex marriage. In fact, about 30 states have banned outright the celebration of such marriages in their territory. The Supreme Court therefore has not ruled on the constitutional right of gays to marry.

Lawyers are still analyzing the full impact of these decisions. But it is already clear that June 26, 2013 will be a historic day in the struggle for equal rights for gay Americans.