It's possible that the Supreme Court will finally make a nation-wide decision on marriage equality. Today, the court decided to hear arguments in four marriage equality cases.
“The ability to protect and care for the person you love shouldn’t stop at state lines. It’s time the Supreme Court ends the indignity and confusion still burdening countless same-sex couples, whose love and commitment is still undermined by discriminatory anti-marriage laws," said GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis. "But even as we look forward to the Supreme Court’s decision, we must also remember that marriage equality in America is a benchmark, not a finish line.”
In 2013, the Supreme Court struck down key parts of the so-called "Defense of Marriage Act" that banned federal recognition of legal marriages performed in states with marriage equality. Since then, state and federal courts have been striking down marriage equality bans.
At this time, only 13 states still have marriage equality bans on the books: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Tennessee, and Texas. However, all of these bans are actively being challenged in court, and most have already been declared unconstitutional by at least one court.
The court is expected to hear arguments in April and issue a decision in June.
For more information about marriage equality, visit www.glaad.org/marriage.