This week, many same-sex couples in our nation's capital celebrated the first anniversary of marriage equality here in D.C. It's been one year since the D.C. Council and Mayor enacted legislation recognizing same-sex couples as equal under district law. LGBT people and our allies throughout the district and around the nation celebrated this historic change.
Every same-sex couple married in D.C.- or in any of the five states that recognize full marriage equality - has gained protections that no other institution can provide, but none of them is yet fully equal under federal law. That is because the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) forbids the federal government from recognizing the lawful civil marriages of same-sex couples. Social Security family benefits, family medical leave, federal worker benefits and other protections are still granted only to different-sex couples.
Until last week, the Department of Justice defended DOMA in federal court. Because the president and his administration recently concluded that DOMA is patently unconstitutional, they decided to stop. DOMA is still in effect, and Congress has the right to intervene in the federal cases and defend it. Today, Speaker of the House John Boehner indicated that he intends to defend government discrimination.
Defending DOMA is hypocritical and is an insult to our Constitution. First, the defense would distract from this nation's real problems: jobs, the economy, home foreclosures, public health issues and national security. The Speaker has stated that these are his priorities and the American people will hold him to his word. Today we called him out on failing to stay true to that statement.
DOMA is a discriminatory law that has no place in a society that claims to be a beacon of reason to the world. DOMA hurts real families. Before the speaker defends it, he should meet with a same-sex couple and their children and tell them to their faces that their family is not as good as his. If he can’t do so, but defends DOMA, he's a hypocrite. If he tells that family that they are unequal, then at least America will know who he is and why he is defending this law.
Finally, DOMA is patently unconstitutional. It creates an irrational classification and denies rights to people who are no different from those who are protected under law. Our Constitution does not tolerate such classifications. To defend DOMA, the Speaker is likely to argue that same-sex couples: the same ones he attacked in 2004 and 2006 - are a powerful group; that it is rational to penalize our families; and that despite unanimous scientific consensus to the contrary, sexual orientation can be changed. The facts are against him, and the Constitution is with us.
Mr. Speaker, when you defend discrimination, you offend American values and shirk your responsibility to govern in the public's interest. This cannot stand.
Joe Solmonese
President, Human Rights Campaign
P.S. Fair-minded people have already sent 125,000 emails to Congress telling them to repeal DOMA, not defend it. To make your voice heard, sound off here.