The Fight for Same Sex Marriage in the 6th Circuit

The Fight for Same Sex Marriage in the 6th Circuit
In the United States there is a current appeal occurring within the 6th circuit for the fight for same sex marriage/Gay marriage rights. The 6th Circuit issued the first ruling in favor of upholding laws that discriminated against same sex couple’s from a federal appellate court in the past several years (The Freedom to Marry, 2015). With all of the talk of marriage litigation and 60 rulings in favor of same sex marriage, it would seem that the country is ready for the freedom to marry for all. Quite a lot of people feel that everyone should be able to get married, and have the same rights as same sex couples despite loving someone of the same sex.
In April 2015, the question of whether same-sex couples nationwide should have the right to marry will finally get to be heard in court before the U.S Supreme Court. For Years, people have one the freedom to marry from the courts of public opinion, to ballot boxes, to even the U.S Supreme Court (The Freedom to Marry, 2015). The argument of Marriage Equality raises the concern that denying marriage to same sex couples is unconstitutional and unfair which violates the American Values of freedom, liberty and respect. This argument has won over many voters, opinion leaders and courts all across the United States (The Freedom to Marry, 2015). The 6th Circuit is the first federal appellate court this year to rule against the freedom to marry. There have been several victories over the last year within the 4th, 7th and 10th Circuit. Those rulings added to nearly 40 additional wins in the state and federal court systems. In just one month gay couples have won the right to marry in 16 states (The Freedom to Marry, 2015). The Supreme Court overruled denial in five marriage cases, which gave freedom rights to those in Indiana, Oklahoma, Utah, Virginia and Wisconsin. These actions also made it legal for Idaho and Nevada in the 9th Circuit Court to grant freedom to marry the day after.
Despite several states being able to grant freedom to marry, there are still several states that ban same sex marriage. The ban on marriage equality remains in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee, which still leads to discrimination for same sex couples. In one month the court decided that there is nothing wrong with granting same sex couples the right to marry, which allowed anti- marriage laws to be struck down in eleven states. Freedom to marry founder and President Evan Wolfson stated the following:
The ruling is completely out of step with the Supreme Court’s clear signal last month, out of step with the Constitutional command as recognized by nearly every state and Federal Court in the past year, and out of step with the majority of the American People (Nicks, 2014).
Even Wolfson also stated that American Couples and their families should not have to keep fighting the courts state by state, day by day, for the freedom to marry and dignity that the constitution promises (Nicks, 2014).
There are people everywhere fighting for their right to marry. For example, In Oklahoma City, there are still people trying to challenge the State’s Constitutional Amendment banning same sex marriage. The people of Oklahoma City want to take all of the politics out of it and just have a heart to heart with the State’s court system (Nicks, 2014). Despite being a red state with nothing on the ballot about the issue of same sex marriage, a pro-gay marriage group deployed a statewide advertising campaign in Oklahoma. The ad tells the story of the Cuyler Family. The family lives in a ranch near Fort Sill, in a rural southwestern town of Oklahoma. Ed Cuyler, who is a decorated Vietnam Veteran, and his wife Robbie live with their daughter Deedra, her partner, Amber, and their three kids (Nicks, 2014). Deedra and Amber were married in the state of Massachusetts in 2011, however their marriage isn’t recognized in the state of Oklahoma due to the state’s 2004 constitutional amendment banning recognition of same sex marriage (Nicks, 2014).
In another state, Utah, the case for Gay Marriage case was argued before the Federal Appeals court in Kitchen v. Herbert (Deam, 2014). There were three couples at the court hearing for same sex marriage rights, and at the end of the hearing, it came down to who gets to define matrimony. This ban, came at the same time as a rush of similar lawsuits across The United States (Deam, 2014). However, Utah’s appeal was the first to reach the federal appellate since the U.S Supreme Court struck down provisions of the Defense of Marriage Act that denied federal benefits to same-sex couples(Deam, 2014). Attorney General, Gene Schaerr contended that his state has the constitutionally guaranteed right to make and enforce its own laws, and that marriage is defined as one man and one woman. However, in the ruling case Kitchen v. Herbert, the courts found that banning same sex couples from marrying violated the U.S Constitution (Deam, 2014).
The supreme court seemed they were ready to strike down part of the law that says marriage as a union of a man and a woman, if that law stands there could a risk with running into conflict with what always been thought to be the essence of state power, which is to oversee marriage, divorce and custody. The four members of the court questioned the constitutionality of the law, they mainly focused on equal protection princaples rather than on the limits of federal power. The Supreme Court agreed to make a decision whether all 50 states must allow gay marriage. The decision came a month after the justice refused to hear appeals from rulings on same sex marriages in 5 states. The decision was a surprise that delivered a victory for gay rights, which expanded the number of states to 24, along with District of Columbia from 19. The number of states has expanded to 36 that allows gay marriage and 70 percent of Americans live where gay couples can marry, the Supreme courts allowed 15 same sex couples to speak out on the rights to marry. The 6th circuit devised each decision for the ruling against the freedom to marry in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee. The court’s decision is hoped to be the last step to the campaign to win nationwide of the rights for same sex marriage and equal treatment, and so the country stands on the right side of history.
In conclusion, In the United States there is a current appeal occurring within the 6th circuit for the fight for same sex marriage/Gay marriage rights. The 6th Circuit issued the first ruling in favor of upholding laws that discriminated against same sex couple’s from a federal appellate court in the past several years (The Freedom to Marry, 2015). With all of the talk of marriage litigation and 60 rulings in favor of same sex marriage, it would seem that the country is ready for the freedom to marry for all. The argument of Marriage Equality raises the concern that denying marriage to same sex couples is unconstitutional and unfair which violates the American Values of freedom, liberty and respect. I feel that everyone should be able to get married, despite loving someone of the same sex. The strategy to win marriage equality for same sex couples comes down to the final victory at the Supreme Court and in the Federal Appellate Court.

References
Deam, J. (2014, April 10). Utah gay marriage case argued before federal appeals court. Retrieved February 15, 2015, from http://articles.latimes.com/2014/apr/10/nation/la-na-nn-utah-gay-marriage-appeal-20140410
Nicks, D. (2014, May 5). Gay-Marriage Advocates Eye Conservative Oklahoma for Latest Push. Retrieved February 15, 2015, from http://time.com/88200/gay-marriage-ad-oklahoma/
The Freedom to Marry at the United States Supreme Court | Freedom to Marry. (2015, January 1). Retrieved February 15, 2015, from http://www.freedomtomarry.org/pages/marriage-cases-seeking-supreme-court-review

Liptak, A., & Baker, P. (2013, March 27). Justices Cast Doubt on Benefits Ban in U.S. Marriage Law. Retrieved February 23, 2015, from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/28/us/supreme-court-defense-of-marriage-act.html?pagewanted=all
Liptak, A. (2015, January 16). Supreme Court to Decide Marriage Rights for Gay Couples Nationwide. Retrieved February 23, 2015, from http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/17/us/supreme-court-to-decide-whether-gays-nationwide-can-marry.html