With the SCOTUS ruling last month that recognition of same-sex marriage is a decision to be left to the states, the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia is gearing up to challenge its state’s definition of marriage.
The Virginia constitution was amended in 2006 to define marriage as between a man and a woman. It also does not recognize gay marriages performed in other states. And the ACLU is working to get both restrictions eliminated.
“There is no rational reason for denying these couples the freedom to marry and every reason to grant them the same recognition by civil authorities that opposite-sex couples have,” ACLU of Virginia executive director Claire Gastanaga told the The Washington Times.
The team of lawyers assembled by ACLU of Virginia will argue that the state’s constitutional amendment transgresses the federal constitutional guarantee of equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment. The ACLU has tried to capitalize on the SCOTUS decision by filing similar suits in Pennsylvania and North Carolina.
However, despite the Supreme Court decision, the battle in Virginia remains tougher than one might imagine. Since 2006 — when the Virginia amendment passed by 57 percent to 43 percent — numerous attempts to get the state to recognize same-sex marriage have failed. Also presenting an obstacle is the Virginia state legislature, where members overwhelmingly support the state’s amendment advocating for traditional marriage.
“Polls that we’ve seen for Virginia show a majority do support marriage equality now,” James Parrish, executive director of Equality Virginia told The Times. “A majority of the House of Delegates does not, and that is a starting point for repealing the marriage amendment and marriage laws.”
Parrish intends to help the ACLU by seeking out personal testimonies of couples and families in Virginia who are affected by the same-sex marriage issue.
As the ACLU of Virginia moves forward, they will be met with opposition from voters who helped pass the 2006 same-sex marriage ban and those who support traditional marriage.
Victoria Cobb, president of the Family Foundation of Virginia — which educates Virginians on traditional marriage as the bedrock of society — was not surprised by the ACLU’s lawsuit announcement, telling The Richmond Times-Dispatch that “despite the maneuvers of the ACLU, the debate over marriage will continue in the legislative and political process, where it belongs.”
