Voter Approved Ban on Same-Sex Marriage in California Overturned on Appeal
A federal appeals court has ruled that the ban on same-sex marriage approved by the voters in California is discriminatory against lesbians and gays. The split decision of the three judges on the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals said that the ban, known as Proposition 8, is harmful to lesbians and gays.
A conservative Christian foundation, The Alliance Defense Fund, said that they thought the ruling would be this way. In a statement today, the foundation said that while they believed the court in San Francisco was in error today, they were confident that the Supreme Court would uphold the ban because it was the “will of the American people.”
The ban was passed in 2008 with 52 percent of the votes. Supporters of the ban said that they will appeal to the Supreme Court. Until there is a ruling from the Supreme Court or if the Supreme Court does not hear the case, the ban will stay in effect. No same-sex marriages will be allowed in California.
Supporters of same-sex marriages felt that today’s ruling was a victory for their cause and for the Constitution of the United States. They feel that Proposition 8 has done more to tear apart homes that are filled with love than any other vote in the state.
The ruling by the Appeals Court affirms the ruling by a District Judge in San Francisco. The two judges that rules the ban was discriminatory were Michael Daly Hawkins and Stephen Reinhardt. They were quick to say that the ruling was only dealing with Proposition 8 and that each of the other states in the U.S. would need to decide that issue of same-sex marriage on their own.
Judge N. Randy Smith gave an opinion that was both dissenting and concurring. Back in 2008, the California Supreme Court had ruled that same-sex marriages were now legal. However, Proposition 8 ended the practice of same-sex marriages in the state.
