Gay marriage gets its day in court and on the Web
Tuesday’s U.S. Supreme Court arguments over whether gay and lesbian couples have the right to marry in California became a spectacle both in D.C. and on the Web.
In Washington, demonstrators expressed both opposition to and support of same-sex marriage while the justices heard oral arguments in what could become a landmark case for same-sex marriage’s legality across the United States.
The case involves California’s Proposition 8, which voters passed in 2008 to ban same-sex marriage, trumping a state Supreme Court decision that had legalized it.
On Wednesday, the court will hear another gay-rights case: whether the federal Defense of Marriage Act wrongly denies equal benefits to married gay couples.
After Tuesday’s arguments, attorneys for both sides said the justices did not reveal a particular leaning for how they might rule. No decision is expected before June.
Proponents of upholding Proposition 8 argued that states should be allowed to decide whether to ban or legalize same-sex marriage.
Opponents noted that public opinion on the issue is shifting. Nine states and the District of Columbia now permit same-sex marriage.
The Los Angeles Times has posted oral arguments if you’d like to hear the case as it was presented to the justices:
Today’s #SupremeCourt gay marriage argument. Audio: lati.ms/jr31p Transcript:lati.ms/jr3cY — Los Angeles Times (@latimes) March 26, 2013
Many Americans, including politicians and public figures, took to Twitter to announce their stand on the issue, which is often opposed by conservatives on religious grounds.
The Supreme Court will hear gay marriage this week. Join me in praying that biblical marriage, between a man and a woman, will be upheld. — Kyle Kupecky (@KyleKupecky) March 26, 2013
God created marriage for a man with a woman. End of story. — Zak Kellum (@zkellum17) March 26, 2013
California Gov. Jerry Brown, a Democrat, announced his support for overturning Proposition 8:
A welter of arguments, but only one issue matters: The right to marry the person of your choice #MarriageEquality — Jerry Brown (@JerryBrownGov) March 26, 2013
... as did the Democratic governor of Massachussetts, Deval Patrick.
Today we are proud of 9 years of marriage equality in MA & look forward to the day when all Americans can marry whomever they love. #SCOTUS — Deval Patrick (@MassGovernor) March 26, 2013
Many members of Congress have begun openly expressing support for same-sex marriage, leading to a flood of tweets during the oral arguments. Several lawmakers, including Sens. Mark Warner (D-Va.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Reps. Sam Farr (D-Carmel) and Jim Himes (D-Conn.), changed their Twitter avatar to a red equal sign, indicating their support for same-sex marriage. The symbol, initially promoted by the Human Rights Campaign, swept across social media on Tuesday.
Denying committed couples the right to marry is unacceptable. Marriage equality must be a constitutional right for all Americans. — Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) (@brianschatz) March 26, 2013
Love is love. All Americans deserve equal treatment under the law. Change your photo if you agree! #UnitedforMarriage twitter.com/RepDanKildee/s… — Rep. Dan Kildee (D-Mich.) (@RepDanKildee) March 26, 2013
Praying for wisdom and empathy from the #SCOTUS as the Justices hear arguments for and against #MarriageEquality. #UnitedforMarriage — Rep. Sam Farr (@RepSamFarr) March 26, 2013
Other members of Congress expressed opposition to overturning Proposition 8.
It is wrong for #SCOTUS to silence democratic debate and redefine marriage by judicial fiat. — Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-Kan.) (@CongHuelskamp) March 26, 2013
Welcome to all visiting DC for #marchformarriage. Thanks for making the trip to demonstrate your commitment to traditional marriage. — Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) (@Jim_Jordan) March 26, 2013
Celebrities chimed in too.
So ... are we a country that protects access to marriage as fiercely as we protect access to assault weapons? Supreme Court, what say you? — James Van Der Beek (@vanderjames) March 26, 2013
Yes, I’m straight. Yes, I’m a Christian. And yes, I strongly support gay rights and marriage equality. Why? Because love is love. ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ — Rob Kardashian (@MrRobKardashian) March 26, 2013
And then there were the usual jokes.
“Grampa, how did you support gay marriage? Did you march like civil rights ppl?” “No. Marching’s hard. I tweeted about it.” — Neal Brennan (@nealbrennan) March 26, 2013
Supreme Court On Gay Marriage: ‘Sure, Who Cares’ onion.com/ZoA5xW — The Onion (@TheOnion) March 26, 2013
Republican women should start letting gay guys marry each other so they stop marrying them by accident. — Josh Gondelman (@joshgondelman) March 26, 2013
No matter how the Supreme Court rules, Manti Te’O will still never be able to marry his invisible ex-girlfriend. :( — Anjeanette Carter (@anjeanettec) March 26, 2013
Marriage is a sacred contract, not between a man and a woman, but between any two human beings and a lifetime’s worth of buried grievances. — God (@TheTweetOfGod) March 26, 2013
[Updated 2:57 p.m. March 27: This post previously included a March 26 tweet by user @GuyEndoreKaiser that stated, “If you stand against gay marriage, congratulations on standing with the Taliban.” The user has since deleted the tweet.]
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