In a ruling that LGBT citizens of America have been waiting for over two years now, President Obama and the Department of justice have said in a statement that they will no longer defend section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act which allows the government to say “Hey, your gay marriage doesn’t exist”. The President has finally made the statement, DOMA is unconstitutional and they will no longer get in the way of lawsuits that challenge the law.
Attorney General Eric Holder(pictured above) in an open letter to House Speaker and Cheetos colored flesh tear fountain Jonh Boehner:
“After careful consideration, including review of a recommendation from me, the President of the United States has made the determination that Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (“DOMA”), 1 U.S.C. § 7, as applied to same-sex couples who are legally married under state law, violates the equal protection component of the Fifth Amendment. Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 530D, I am writing to advise you of the Executive Branch’s determination and to inform you of the steps the Department will take in two pending DOMA cases to implement that determination. “
“While the Department has previously defended DOMA against legal challenges involving legally married same-sex couples, recent lawsuits that challenge the constitutionality of DOMA Section 3 have caused the President and the Department to conduct a new examination of the defense of this provision. In particular, in November 2011, plaintiffs filed two new lawsuits challenging the constitutionality of Section 3 of DOMA in jurisdictions without precedent on whether sexual-orientation classifications are subject to rational basis review or whether they must satisfy some form of heightened scrutiny. Windsor v. United States, No. 1:10-cv-8435 (S.D.N.Y.); Pedersen v. OPM, No. 3:10-cv-1750 (D. Conn.). Previously, the Administration has defended Section 3 in jurisdictions where circuit courts have already held that classifications based on sexual orientation are subject to rational basis review, and it has advanced arguments to defend DOMA Section 3 under the binding standard that has applied in those cases.”
With that being said, though it has been long overdue, it is truly a great day for not only the LGBT citizens of America, but for ALL Americans. Because the country you call home just took a giant step toward furthering equality and justice for its citizens. I’m personally very glad to see two very powerful black men making history during black history month. We’re one step closer now to becoming a great nation that supports all of its citizens. You know, like Canada has been doing for years.
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Great day for equality and progress!