On Wednesday, March 27, 2013, The United States Supreme Court will start to hear opening arguments on whether the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) should be struck down. DOMA, enacted in 1996 during the Clinton administration defines marriage as a union between one man and one woman, the law denying gay couples the federal right to marry.
While nine states have legalized same-sex marriage, gay spouses in these states are not entitled to the same federal benefits granted to heterosexual couples. Some of these rights include Social Security Survivor’s benefits in the event of one’s deceased partner, the filing of joint tax returns, and eligibility to take certain tax credits.
With the Obama administration declaring the law as unconstitutional in 2011 and the former President Bill Clinton’s recent public lack of support for DOMA, the act seems to be losing more of its fire. However, many groups feel that allowing gay marriage will lead to children in schools learning about gay families and gay parents raising kids, something they feel is morally wrong. These anti-gay groups have been fighting to keep DOMA in place. How powerful is that fight? We will start to find out tomorrow, as the Supreme Court hears the initial arguments concerning DOMA.
United States vs. Windsor
With the United States on the side of DOMA, lesbian Edith Windsor will be challenging DOMA. When Windsor lost her wife, Thea Spyer, in 2009, the federal government socked the 83-year old Windsor with a $363,053 estate tax bill, an extra expense that does not affect heterosexual marriages automatically recognized by the federal government.
Windsor, a former programmer at IBM, wants justice.
In an interview with NPR, Windsor said, "If Thea was Theo, I would not have had to pay" those taxes. "It's heartbreaking," she adds. "It's just a terrible injustice, and I don't expect that from my country. I think it's a mistake that has to get corrected."
Like many people in the gay community, Edith Windsor believes in the power of marriage.
"The fact is, marriage is this magic thing," said Windsor, as stated on www.npr.org. "I mean forget all the financial stuff — marriage ... symbolizes commitment and love like nothing else in the world. And it's known all over the world. I mean, wherever you go, if you're married, that means something to people, and it meant a difference in feeling the next day."
Mirroring the feelings of Edith Windsor, LGBT individuals also want gay marriage; some also want to extend this love by raising children.
Readers, how do you feel about DOMA and gay marriage? Please express your thoughts with a comment below.
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