Columbus, Ohio (AP) – This month marks the 10th anniversary of the Landmark Supreme Court decision, which legalized same-sex marriage across the United States on June 26, 2015.
The Obergefell v. Hodges decision prompted various states to enact protections for same-sex domestic partnerships or private unions, while some states upheld the position that marriage could only exist between a man and a woman.
In the hometown of plaintiff James Obergefell, voters overwhelmingly approved an amendment in 2004 that reflected marriage laws limiting federal acknowledgment for same-sex couples. This set the stage for his pivotal legal challenge.
Here’s what you need to understand about the immediate and long-term ramifications of the litigation, key players, and the 2015 ruling.
Who are James Obergefell and Rick Hodges?
Obergefell and John Arthur, who initiated the first legal action, were long-time partners from Cincinnati. They shared nearly two decades together when Arthur received an ALS diagnosis in 2011. Obergefell took on the role of caregiver as Arthur’s health progressively deteriorated.
The couple married in 2013, following the Supreme Court’s decision which invalidated federal defenses against same-sex marriage. Unable to marry in Ohio, they flew to Maryland where they wed on the tarmac due to Arthur’s delicate condition.
The legal dispute arose when they were informed that their marriage wouldn’t be recorded on Arthur’s death certificate. They took their case to court seeking official recognition, which the court granted. However, Ohio appealed, escalating the matter to the nation’s highest court.
Democrat Obergefell had a unsuccessful bid for Ohio House in 2022.
Rick Hodges, a Republican, served as the director of the Ohio Department of Health from August 2014 to 2017, the department responsible for processing state death certificates. Before his appointment by then-Governor John Kasich, Hodges worked in his local government for five years. He met Obergefell during the trial and they developed a friendship.
What was the legal argument?
Ultimately, the case of Obergefell v. Hodges contended that the right to marry is guaranteed under the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, specifically the due process and equal protection clauses.
The lawsuit brought together multiple cases from same-sex couples in Ohio, Kentucky, Michigan, and Tennessee who were denied marriage licenses or recognition of their out-of-state marriages, leading to varied opinions in the Federal Circuit Court.
In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court affirmed that marriage is a fundamental right, “inherent to the freedom of a person,” thus protected by the Constitution. This ruling effectively invalidated state bans on same-sex marriage and ensured recognition of such marriages from other jurisdictions.
The implications of the ruling significantly affected areas including custody, property rights, taxation, insurance, and business law.
How did the country respond to the decision?
Following the Obergefell decision, there was a notable increase in same-sex marriages. Many couples, who had long been in relationships, began celebrating their unions in churches that welcomed the court’s ruling. The estimated number of same-sex couples more than doubled to around 823,000, according to June data from the Williams Institute at UCLA Law School.
However, not all Americans welcomed this change. Kim Davis, a clerk from Rowan County, Kentucky, became a national symbol of opposition; she faced temporary imprisonment and led protests against the legalization of gay marriages.
Davis, a Republican, lost her reelection bid in 2018 and was ordered to pay attorney fees for couples who were unable to receive licenses from her office. She has appealed in July 2024 to overturn the Obergefell ruling.
As the 10th anniversary of the decision approaches, Obergefell has expressed ongoing concerns about the state of LGBTQ+ rights in the U.S. and the risks of the Supreme Court potentially overturning the ruling that bears his name.
This year, eight states introduced resolutions aimed at reversing Obergefell’s decision, while the Southern Baptist Convention overwhelmingly voted at its Dallas meeting earlier this month to support efforts to oppose same-sex marriage. In contrast, over a dozen states have sought to bolster legal protections for same-sex couples should Obergefell be overturned.
By 2025, approximately seven in ten Americans (68%) supported legal recognition of same-sex marriage, up from 60% in May 2015.
Source: apnews.com