Today at the Supreme Court

From the debate over whether Prop 8’s supporters have standing to appeal, to the compelling arguments about the proper form of scrutiny for antigay laws like Prop 8, the justices have many reasons to conclude this discriminatory measure cannot stand.

There were many indications today that the court is truly wrestling with this question. Clearly many justices recognize they are dealing with real people, real families and real children, that these restrictions harm real people. The question is, what is the appropriate action?

When Prop 8 eliminated marriage for lesbians and gay men, it deliberately relegated this long disfavored group back into a subordinate caste, ending their too-brief taste of inclusion and equality. And in stripping away a right previously granted by the California Constitution, the initiative excluded lesbians and gay men from the state’s equality guarantee itself.

As we argued in our friend-of-the-court brief, Prop 8 literally violates the express command of the federal Equal Protection Clause.

We congratulate our colleagues at the American Foundation for Equal Rights and Ted Olson and David Boies on a great day at the Supreme Court. 

Listen to the Supreme Court argument, or read the transcript.

Learn more: Marriage at the Supreme Court

Read our blog series "From Sex to Marriage: How We Got From Lawrence v. Texas to the Cases Against DOMA and Prop 8."