Speakg Out for Equaly: the Constutn, Gay Rights, and the Supreme Court | Constutn Center

Contents:

• SPEAKG OUT FOR EQUALY: THE CONSTUTN, GAY RIGHTS, AND THE SUPREME COURT
• A PROCLAMATN ON LBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENR, AND QUEER PRI MONTH, 2021
• A PROCLAMATN ON LBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENR, QUEER, AND INTERSEX PRI MONTH, 2023
• 'ALL MEN CREATED EQUAL' MEANS CONSTUTNAL PROTECTN FOR GAY MARRIAGE

SPEAKG OUT FOR EQUALY: THE CONSTUTN, GAY RIGHTS, AND THE SUPREME COURT

To memorate the 50th anniversary of the first Annual Remr march, the Natnal Constutn Center is proud to host Speakg Out for Equaly: The Constutn, Gay Rights, and the Supreme Court, an exhib created partnership wh the William Way LGBT Communy Center. Speakg Out for Equaly will chronicle the gay rights movement and the ongog bate over how much the Constutn protects gay rights. Pri is a time to rell the trials the Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgenr, and Queer (LGBTQ+) muny has endured and to rejoice the triumphs of trailblazg dividuals who have bravely fought — and ntue to fight — for full equaly.

BIDEN JR., Print of the Uned Stat of Ameri, by virtue of the thory vted me by the Constutn and the laws of the Uned Stat, do hereby proclaim June 2021 as Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgenr, and Queer Pri Month. Early Years: Same-Sex Marriage Bans In 1970, jt one year after the historic Stonewall Rts that galvanized the gay rights movement, law stunt Richard Baker and librarian Jam McConnell applied for a marriage license Mnota.Clerk Gerald Nelson rejected their applitn bee they were a same-sex uple, and a trial urt upheld his cisn.

A PROCLAMATN ON LBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENR, AND QUEER PRI MONTH, 2021

Supreme Court 1972 cled to hear the se “for want of a substantial feral qutn.” This lg effectively blocked feral urts om lg on same-sex marriage for s, leavg the cisn solely the hands of stat, which alt blow after blow to those hopg to see gay marriage beg legal.In 1973, for stance, Maryland beme the first state to create a law that explicly f marriage as a unn between a man and woman, a belief held by many nservative relig groups.

Though the gay rights movement saw some advancements the 1970s and 1980s—such as Harvey Milk beg the first openly gay man elected to public office the untry 1977—the fight for gay marriage ma ltle headway for many years.Marriage Equaly: Turng the Ti In the late 1980s and early 1990s, same-sex upl saw the first signs of hope on the marriage ont a long time.

A PROCLAMATN ON LBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENR, QUEER, AND INTERSEX PRI MONTH, 2023

In 1989, the San Francis Board of Supervisors passed an ordance that allowed homosexual upl and unmarried heterosexual upl to register for domtic partnerships, which granted hospal visatn rights and other benefs.Three years later, the District of Columbia siarly passed a new law that allowed same-sex upl to register as domtic partners.

'ALL MEN CREATED EQUAL' MEANS CONSTUTNAL PROTECTN FOR GAY MARRIAGE

Ernment.Then, 1993, the hight urt Hawaii led that a ban on same-sex marriage may vlate that state nstutn’s Equal Protectn Clse—the first time a state urt has ever ched toward makg gay marriage legal.The Hawaii Supreme Court sent the se—brought by a gay male uple and two lbian upl who were nied marriage licens 1990—back for further review to the lower First Circu Court, which 1991 origally dismissed the su.As the state tried to prove that there was “pellg state tert” jtifyg the ban, the se would be tied up ligatn for the next three years.The Defense of Marriage Act Opponents of gay marriage, however, did not s on their hnch. Congrs 1996 passed the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which Print Bill Clton signed to law.DOMA didn’t ban gay marriage outright but specified that only heterosexual upl uld be granted feral marriage benefs. That is, even if a state ma gay marriage legal, same-sex upl still wouldn’t be able to file e tax jotly, sponsor spo for immigratn benefs or receive spoal Social Secury payments, among many other thgs.The act was a huge setback for the marriage equaly movement, but transient good news arose three months later: Hawaii Judge Kev S.