Revolution on the prairie
Today is one of the extraordinary days in the history of the state of Iowa. The state Supreme Court has unanimously confirmed the fundamental principal of equal protection under the law by striking down the state legislature's 1998 law banning same-sex marriage.The ruling is a monumental victory for gays and lesbians, for the nation's civil rights movement, and for the state of Iowa, which stands today as a beacon to 47 other states that don't currently allow same-sex marriages.
Maura Strassberg, a Drake University law professor in Des Moines, told the New York Times that she was not surprised by the ruling, "What is really stunning (though) is that it's unanimous. It's a very bold, confident opinion," she said upon reviewing the 69-page decision, "It affirms a certain notion of what Iowa is and what Iowa means."
Hear, hear. If I may be equally as bold, I'd like to point out that there was only state legislative campaign in the Des Moines area, and probably in the state, that made gay marriage rights a key issue of its platform last year, or probably any other year. There was just one political campaign that was going door-to-door in the capital city with literature touting unequivocal support for full marriage rights for gays and lesbians. There was only one political campaign for any level of state or local office with a public presence at last fall's Capital City Pride celebration in Des Moines. In each case, that one campaign was mine.
Support on the Hill is still in doubt. It remains to be seen whether the Democratic-led legislature or the governor, another Democrat, will allow the court ruling to stand. Governor Culver offered no enthusiasm or even support for the ruling in his media release today. It read, "The decision released this morning by the Supreme Court addresses a complicated and emotional issue, one on which Iowans have strong views and opinions on both sides. The next responsible step is to thoroughly review this decision, which I am doing with my legal counsel and the attorney general, before reacting to what it means for Iowa."
Does he mean a legal review, or a political one? I guess it can't hurt the governor politically to wait and see which way the wind is blowing before deciding whether these same-sex marriages should be the equal of his own.
This is a joyous day for Iowa, a state that struck down slavery rights 17 years before the Dred Scott/U.S. Supreme Court ruling of 1858, and the first state that allowed women to practice law almost a century and a half ago. Now it's the first state located in America's heartland to recognize same-sex marriages, a decision that will have both a national and international impact for human rights. Our liberties we prize and our rights we will maintain.
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Reverend Keith Ratliff, president of the Iowa/Nebraska state conference of the NAACP, began the week lecturing State Senator Jack Hatch on tolerance at the minister's North Side church. This morning he was out in front of the Iowa Supreme Court building praying with other bigots that the state's gay marriage ban might be upheld. Disgraceful.
posted by CM @ 12:54 PM
2 Comments:
Why should the government be regulating who can marry in the first place? The government regulates too much of our lives already.
We should not debate who should be able to get married but why we continue to allow the government to micromanage our lives like this.
TA
If ever there was a court decision completely in tune with libertarian principles, I think it's this one.
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