|
The New York Times
U.S.
California Court
Affirms Right to Gay Marriage
 |
|
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
John Lewis, left, and Stuart Gaffney reacted to a
California Supreme Court decision to overturn the ban on same-sex
marriage in San Francisco. |
By ADAM LIPTAK,
nytimes.com on the Web, May 15, 2008
Same-sex couples have a
constitutional right to marry, the California Supreme Court ruled Thursday.
The court’s 4-to-3 decision striking down state laws that had limited marriages
to unions between a man and a woman makes California only the second state,
after Massachusetts, to allow same-sex marriages. The decision, which
becomes effective in 30 days, is certain to play a role in the presidential
campaign.
“In view of the substance and significance of the fundamental constitutional
right to form a family relationship,” Chief Justice Ronald M. George wrote of
marriage for the majority, “the California Constitution properly must be
interpreted to guarantee this basic civil right to all Californians, whether gay
or heterosexual, and to same-sex couples as well as to opposite-sex couples.”
California already has a strong domestic partnership law that gives gay and
lesbian couples nearly all of the benefits and burdens of heterosexual marriage.
The majority said that is not enough.
Given the historic, cultural, symbolic and constitutional significance of the
concept of marriage, Chief Justice George wrote, the state cannot limit marriage
to opposite-sex couples. The court left open the possibility that another
terms could denote state-sanctioned unions so long as that term was used across
the board.
The state’s ban on same-sex marriage was based on a law enacted by the
Legislature in 1977 and a statewide initiative approved by the voters in 2000,
both defining marriage as limited to unions between a man and a woman. The
question before the court was whether those laws violate provisions of the state
Constitution protecting equality and fundamental rights.
Conservative groups have proposed a new initiative, this one to amend the state
constitution to ban same-sex marriage. If it is allowed onto the ballot in
November and approved by the voters, Thursday’s decision would be overridden.
The groups have gathered more than a million signatures on initiative petitions
and submitted them to the state.
Justice Marvin R. Baxter, dissenting, said the majority had should have deferred
to the state Legislature, which has in recent years increased legal protections
for same-sex couples.
“But a bare majority of this court,” Justice Baxter wrote, “not satisfied with
the pace of democratic change, now abruptly forestalls that process and
substitutes, by judicial fiat, its own social policy views for those expressed
by the people themselves.”
The California Legislature has twice passed bills allowing same-sex marriages,
but they were vetoed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who said they would overturn
the 2000 referendum.
Mr. Schwarzenegger opposes the current ballot initiative seeking a
constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. He said Thursday that he
respected the court’s decision and would not support overturning it, according
to The Associated Press.
In 2004, Mayor Gavin Newsom of San Francisco directed the county clerk to issue
marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples. Before the California
Supreme Court halted the practice, more than 4,000 same-sex couples received
marriage licenses in San Francisco.
|
