Proposition 8, the amendment that outlawed gay marriage in California, was overturned today and ruled unconstitutional. The entire ruling is on Scribd. Note the conclusion.
Proposition 8 fails to advance any rational basis in singling out gay men and lesbians for denial of a marriage license. Indeed, the evidence shows Proposition 8 does nothing more than enshrine in the California Constitution the notion that opposite sex couples are superior to same-sex couples. Because California has no interest in discriminating against gay men and lesbians, and because Proposition 8 prevents California from fulfilling its constitutional obligation to provide marriages on an equal basis, the court concludes that Proposition 8 is unconstitutional.
There will be a stay to keep this ruling from going into action, but gay couples weren’t wasting their time. Some of them got married today in celebration. The other side–consisting entirely of religious heterosexuals and very closeted homosexuals–will appeal in order to assert their perceived superiority, but now they actually have to make an argument.
44 more states to go, but if the ban was ruled unconsitutional in California, why can’t that be the case everywhere? The Constitution is the same everywhere.