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Gay
Marriage Debate Reignited After New Jersey Decision |
Posted:
11.01.06
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The issue of gay marriage has resurfaced on a national level
following a court ruling that clears a path for gay marriage in
New Jersey.
Printer-friendly version: PDF
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"Although we cannot find that a fundamental right to same-sex
marriage exists in this state, the unequal dispensation of rights
and benefits to committed same-sex partners can no longer be tolerated
under our state constitution," New Jersey Supreme Court Judge
Barry Albin wrote in the decision.
 The
court gave the state's legislature six months to rewrite the law
to provide benefits for gay couples via same-sex marriage or "civil
unions," which give couples the same rights as married couples
without using the word "marriage."
New Jersey politicians said in a statement the deadline was too
soon to make the required changes, but the gay rights group Garden
State Equality said three state legislators were prepared to introduce
a bill that would allow same-sex marriage.
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Legal definitions |
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In New Jersey, gay couples in "domestic partnerships"
already receive some benefits if one partner is a state employee,
according to Bloomberg News, but the new ruling allows expansion
of their benefits to parallel those of heterosexual couples.
 Much
of the debate has concerned the legal definition of words relating
to marriage that have social implications.
In 1996, then-president Clinton signed the Defense of Marriage
Act, whose stated goal was to "protect the institution of
marriage." The act defined "marriage" and "spouse"
for federal legal purposes as only applicable to opposite-sex
couples.
A 1997 Government Accountability Office report said more than
1,000 federal laws include marital status as a factor, but the
federal government has left it up to individual state lawmakers
to interpret treatment for same-sex couples.
And their definitions can have huge social and economic implications
for gay couples, including health benefits, child custody rights,
pension benefits and property rights.
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Precedent
in other states |
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The American Community Survey suggests more than 20,000 same-sex
couples lived in New Jersey in 2005, and the Associated Press
estimates the largest proportion of gay households -- comprising
more than 1 percent of all households -- are found in California,
Massachusetts, Vermont and New York -- all sites of recent lawsuits.
 The
gay community was set back earlier this summer when a similar
case to the one decided in New Jersey was rejected in a New York
court.
In 2004, California's Supreme Court voided gay marriage licenses
that had been issued in San Francisco. Also in 2004, Massachusetts
became the only state to permanently allow "gay marriage"
after the state Supreme Court ruled it was unconstitutional not
to do so.
But unlike Massachusetts, which has a law preventing non-residents
from marrying there, gay couples from other states could possibly
marry in New Jersey if the state allows it.
Gay advocates also are putting faith in New Jersey because it
is a liberal state controlled by a Democratic legislature that
was one of the first to allow adoptive rights for gay couples.
Currently, the other most liberal states, Vermont and Connecticut,
allow only civil unions, with legal rights equal to heterosexual
marriages, but not gay marriage.
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Conservatives
respond |
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Soon after the New Jersey decision, President Bush reasserted
his view that marriage be defined as a "union between a man
and a woman." He tried to amend the U.S. Constitution to
include such a statement earlier this year, but the Senate defeated
the amendment.
 Conservative
groups also have been upset by the New Jersey decision.
Matt Daniels, president of Alliance for Marriage, said the New
Jersey court overstepped its authority by pressuring the legislature
to either allow gay marriage or civil unions.
"That is not democracy. That is court-imposed policy-making
that takes this out of the hand of the people," Daniels told
The New York Times.
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The future
of gay marriage |
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Cases similar to New Jersey are pending in California, Connecticut,
Iowa and Maryland, and, according to the National Conference of
State Legislatures, eight states -- Arizona, Colorado, Idaho,
South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia and Wisconsin
-- will have same-sex union measures on the ballot in the Nov.
7 midterm election.
--Compiled
by Adnaan Wasey for NewsHour Extra
How have legal decisions about same-sex marriage affected
your community? Do you think the issue should be left up to the
states or do you think the federal government should get involved?
Let other students know what you think. Click
here to submit your essay or editorial.
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