Title: The Journey to Marriage Equality in the United States - HRC
Headings: The Journey to Marriage Equality in the United States
The Journey to Marriage Equality in the United States
A Growing Call for Equality
New Century & New Beginnings
Rising Support Signals Hope
A Turning Point for Change
Marriage Equality Becomes a Reality
HRC’s Work Changing Hearts & Minds
Decades of Championing Equality
Working from Coast to Coast
Building Coalitions
Our Red Logo for Equality
Creating a Digital Wave
Celebrating Our Victory
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Content: At the federal level, couples were denied access to more than 1,100 federal rights and responsibilities associated with the institution, as well as those denied by their given state. The Defense of Marriage Act was signed into law in 1996 and defined marriage by the federal government as between a man and woman, thereby allowing states to deny marriage equality. New Century & New Beginnings
As the Supreme Court decision in Lawrence v. Texas struck down sodomy laws in 2003, another victory was celebrated as Massachussetts became the first state to legalize same-sex marriage via a court ruling. On the federal level, however, efforts continued to prevent equality from becoming a reality. President Bush announced his opposition to same-sex marriage while the House introduced a constitutional amendment that would define marriage as between a man and a woman. Rising Support Signals Hope
States from coast to coast began striking down past bans and enshrining marriage equality in new laws. California famously achieved marriage equality in 2008, only to have it dismantled again by the introduction and passage of Proposition 8, a ballot initiative that updated the state constitution to define marriage as between a man and a woman, that same year. The amendment later was disputed in lower level courts before making its way to the Supreme Court. A Turning Point for Change
Only a few years after President Obama declared DOMA unconstitutional, — and instructed the Justice Department to stop defending it in court — the Supreme Court advanced marriage equality through key decisions in 2013. Hollingsworth v. Perry determined Prop.