US Supreme Court in historic rulings on gay marriage to my blogger

US Supreme Court in historic rulings on gay marriage

 

 

The US Supreme Court has struck down a law denying federal benefits to gay couples and cleared the way for same-sex marriage in California.

The justices said that the Defense of Marriage Act, known as Doma, discriminated against same-sex couples.
They declined to rule on California's prohibition of gay marriage, known as Proposition 8, in effect allowing such unions to resume in the state.
Opinion polls indicate that most Americans support same-sex marriage.
Wednesday's decisions do not affect the bans on gay unions enshrined in the constitutions of more than 30 US states.
But the California ruling means that 13 US states and the District of Columbia now recognise same-sex marriage.
'We are more free' The Doma opinion grants legally married gay men and women access to the same federal entitlements available to opposite-sex married couples. These include tax, health and pension benefits and family hospital visits.

The landmark 5-4 rulings prompted celebrations from about 1,000 gay rights advocates gathered outside the Supreme Court in Washington DC and nationwide.

The legal challenge to Doma was brought by New York resident Edith Windsor, 83.
She was handed a tax bill of $363,000 (£236,000) when she inherited the estate of her spouse Thea Speyer - a levy she would not have had to pay if she had been married to a man.
"It's an accident of history that put me here," Ms Windsor said after the ruling was handed down.
Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote in the ruling: "Doma writes inequality into the entire United States Code.
"Under Doma, same-sex married couples have their lives burdened, by reason of government decree, in visible and public ways," the decision added.
"Doma's principal effect is to identify a subset of state-sanctioned marriages and make them unequal."
Lower courts had also decided in Ms Windsor's favour.
After the ruling Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel said the Pentagon would begin extending benefits to same-sex military spouses as soon as possible.
Defence officials added there were an estimated 18,000 gay couples in the armed forces, although it is not known how many were married.
US President Barack Obama, who is on a state visit to the West African country of Senegal, said: "When all Americans are treated as equal, no matter who they are or whom they love, we are all more free."
'No authority' Proposition 8 is a ban on gay marriage passed by California voters in November 2008, just months after the state's supreme court decided such unions were legal.