The evolution of what we as a Nation believe marriage "is" continues to evolve. It was only a little over four decades ago that marriage did not include interracial marriages. In a flashback to the movie Guess Who's coming to Dinner we begin to see how our Nation is evolving.
Guess Who's Coming to
Dinner is a 1967 American drama film starring Spencer Tracy, Sidney Poitier
and Katharine Hepburn. The film considered the then controversial subject of
interracial marriage, which had been illegal in most states, and was still
illegal in 17 states, until June 12, 1967, when anti-miscegenation laws were
struck down by the Supreme Court in Loving
v. Virginia.
The plot centers on a daughter’s return to her affluent
American home in San Francisco, bringing her new fiancé to dinner to meet her
parents. She finds it difficult to
comprehend her liberal parents’ reaction to her plan to marry an African American.
While they taught her to treat others as
equals, the parents strike a different tone when it comes to their daughter’s
choice of a life mate. The fiancé’s
parents fly up from Los Angeles to the dinner but, like the parents of the
bride to be, they are shocked when they learn their son intends to enter into
an interracial marriage. The dinner evolves from an awkward dinner party to a
meeting of tolerance and understanding as family and friends try to accept the
couple's choice.
Same-sex marriage in the United States is recognized in several jurisdictions. As of January 2013, nine states—Connecticut, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Vermont, and Washington—as well as the District of Columbia and two Native American tribes —have legalized same-sex marriage. In addition, Rhode Island recognizes same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions, and California, which briefly granted same-sex marriages in 2008, now recognizes them on a conditional basis.
While several jurisdictions have legalized same-sex marriagee through court rulings, legislative action, and popular vote, nine states prohibit same-sex marriage by statute and 30 prohibit it in their constitutions. The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), enacted in 1996, prevents the federal governmentt from recognizing same-sex marriages and allows each state to refuse recognition of same-sex marriages performed in other states. The provision of DOMA forbidding the federal government from recognizing same-sex marriages has been found unconstitutional in eight federal courts, including two federal appeals courts. Five of these cases are pending review by the Supreme Court.
Polls show that public attitudes have shifted drastically on same-sex marriage over the past decade. A majority of Americans now favor same-sex marriage, up from roughly one third in 2003. The recent decision of many Republicans to sign on to an amicus brief that argues that same-sex marriage bans are discriminatory, places them at odds the House Republican leadership, which has authorized the expenditure of tax dollars to defend the 1996 marriage law.
Amicus briefs may not necessarily change the Supreme Court justice's minds, but it is persuasive. The importance however, is the evolution or as I would say, "better understanding" of our fundamental values.
The laws of our Nation must demonstrate that the United States is a nation of values, founded on the idea that all people are created equal and that all people have rights, no matter what they look like, where they came from, or what their sexual orientation is.
When it comes to marriage, As Spencer Tracy’s character taught us, it
does not matter what others think of another’s relationship. What is truly important is how much they feel for
each other and if it is half of what we feel for our loved ones, that’s
everything!
