NY Times In a long-sought victory for the gay rights movement, the Supreme Court ruled by a 5-to-4 vote on Friday that the Constitution guarantees a right to same-sex marriage.
“No
longer may this liberty be denied,” Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote
for the majority in the historic decision. “No union is more profound
than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity,
devotion, sacrifice and family. In forming a marital union, two people
become something greater than once they were.”
Marriage
is a “keystone of our social order,” Justice Kennedy said, adding that
the plaintiffs in the case were seeking “equal dignity in the eyes of
the law.”[...]
The
court’s four more liberal justices joined Justice Kennedy’s majority
opinion. Each member of the court’s conservative wing filed a separate
dissent, in tones ranging from resigned dismay to bitter scorn.
In dissent, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. said the Constitution had nothing to say on the subject of same-sex marriage.
“If
you are among the many Americans — of whatever sexual orientation — who
favor expanding same-sex marriage, by all means celebrate today’s
decision,” Chief Justice Roberts wrote. “Celebrate the achievement of a
desired goal. Celebrate the opportunity for a new expression of
commitment to a partner. Celebrate the availability of new benefits. But
do not celebrate the Constitution. It had nothing to do with it.”
In
a second dissent, Justice Antonin Scalia mocked the soaring language of
Justice Kennedy, who has become the nation’s most important judicial
champion of gay rights.
“The
opinion is couched in a style that is as pretentious as its content is
egotistic,” Justice Scalia wrote of his colleague’s work. “Of course the
opinion’s showy profundities are often profoundly incoherent.”
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