The Right to MarryAlex Lipp

Marriage (n)- the social institution under which a man and a woman establish their decision to live as husband and wife by

legal commitments or religious ceremonies

Arguments

Gay marriage destroys the sanctity of homosexual marriage

Civil unions should be sufficient Homosexuals cannot have children

Baker v Nelson, 1971

› Jones v Hallahan (1973), Singer v Hara

(1974)

Baehr v. Lewin, 1993

Ninth Amendment-The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

Fourteenth Amendment-No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws

Defense of Marriage Act

Signed in 1996 by Bill Clinton Marriage- legal union of one man and

one woman By the end of 2000, over 30 states had

mini-DOMAs signed into law Repealed by Obama in 2011

California (1999)- first state to allow domestic partnerships

Vermont (1999)- first state to allow civil unions

Massachusetts (2004)- first legal same-sex marriages performed in the United States

Present

Eight states and the District of Columbia issue same-sex marriage licenses

Ten states allow alternatives such as civil unions or domestic partnerships

Controversy in California

First state to allow domestic partnerships (1999)

Same-sex marriage permitted in California (2008)

Proposition 8 2010 and 2012- Proposition 8 ruled to

be in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment

Why Same-Sex Marriage is Inevitable

Insight of the gay rights movement has proved correct

Young people support it so strongly

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMLZO-sObzQ