A Pennsylvania law that effectively bans same-sex marriage is among the first to be targeted by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) now that the Supreme Court has struck down the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). The organization’s case has just gotten a boost from Pennsylvania’s Attorney General, who happens to support their position.
The 1996 Pennsylvania law defines marriage as between a man and a woman, as DOMA did, and the state does not recognize same-sex marriages that were legally performed in other states. On Tuesday, the ACLU filed suit in Federal District Court on behalf of 23 plaintiffs–including the minor children of one same-sex couple–who either want to marry in Pennsylvania or have their marriages from another state recognized. According to the New York Times, the suit cites the Supreme Court’s conclusions, that the plaintiffs are being denied a “status of immense import” and the children of same-sex couples are being deprived of “the integrity and closeness of their own family” when parents aren’t permitted to marry.
this is what can happen when we vote for us and not them the 1% and their minions, opposition to laws that are not designed for you to attain the "life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness"
would not defend Pennsylvania’s law. After reading from Pennsylvania’s Declaration of Rights, she reviewed the examples of other forms of discrimination that have fallen in the commonwealth, such as a ban on interracial marriages, and said:“It is now time in this state to end another wave of discrimination.”She quoted from both the U.S. Constitution and that of the state, then concluded:“I can not defend the constitutionality of Pennsylvania’s version of DOMA where I believe it to be wholly unconstitutional.”Contrasting her duty to state agencies, including the governor’s office–all of which are represented by platoons of good lawyers–with her duty toward the people–who generally are not–she pledged to the state’s citizens:“As Attorney General, I choose you…Today, we represent everyone who does not have representation.”
those are words you'll never hear from the republicans unless it's on Saturday Night Live.
