As Gay Marriage Heads To Court, A Look Back At The Bumpy Ride

[DriftingCrow]

http://www.npr.org/2013/03/21/174879832/as-gay-marriage-heads-to-court-a-look-back-at-the-bumpy-ride
Ari Shapiro, NPR News, March 21, 2013

"Gays and lesbians have adopted the phrase "it gets better" as a kind of slogan to assure young people that life won't always be so tough. Looking back, life has gotten dramatically better for LGBT people in the United States in a very short period of time. The modern gay rights movement began less than 50 years ago. Today, supporters of same-sex marriage outnumber opponents."

This article chronicals some of the steps that have lead the LGBT-rights movement to where it is today, from Bowers v. Hardwick, to Barney Frank coming out in 1987, to the character of Rickie Vasquez on My So-Called Life which aired in 1994, to Matthew Shepard, to Vermont legalizing civil unions in 2000 and Massachusetts allowing same-sex marriages in 2004.

Next week, the US Supreme Court will be hearing challenges to California's gay-marriage ban.

[Jamie D]

This is going to be an interesting case.

On one hand, you have a ballot initiative passed by a majority of the voters in the State of California, in reaction to a State Supreme Court ruling.

On the other hand, you are dealing with fundamental human rights of association and privacy.

My own view is that government should not be involved in regulating marriage.  My guess, which ever way the decision goes, it is going to be on narrow grounds.

[DriftingCrow]

Yeah it's going to be really interesting, I can't wait to read the case when it comes out!