By declining to act, the Supreme Court has acted.
The high court’s decision to reject requests from Indiana and four other states to review decisions that overturned the five states’ bans on same-sex marriage clears the way for devoted couples to marry one another.
U.S. District Judge Richard Young made his ruling to this effect on June 25, and the Seventh District Court of Appeals in Chicago upheld that ruling on Sept. 4. Both the district court and the appeals court said Indiana’s ban on same-sex marriage discriminates against many of its citizens.
The Supreme Court decided not to take up the Indiana case or cases from Utah, Wisconsin, Virginia and Oklahoma, which said the same thing: Prohibiting same-sex marriage is unconstitutional because it does not treat people equally.
Some commentators have suggested the announcement signals the Supreme Court is going slow on the issue, which is still facing battles in many lower courts.
Here’s another take: The Supreme Court appears to realize the logic in the multiple district court and appeals court rulings needs no further explanation, and the time for same-sex marriage to be legal has arrived.
Earlier this year, some members of the Indiana General Assembly still seemed hell-bent on discriminating against same-sex couples when it came to legal unions.
Momentum seemed in place in a conservative House and Senate to enshrine a ban against same-sex marriage in the Indiana Constitution. But lawmakers got the message that the acceptance of these unions is growing at a rapid pace, and thus, the effort was killed during the session, though the law already in place remained there.
Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller has continued to argue the state’s law should be able to stand, though two courts have disagreed.
He said Monday he was disappointed the Supreme Court won’t act on the case once and for all so states know whether they have authority over marriage laws.
But he said he wanted all Hoosiers “to show respect for the court, the attorneys, the county clerks and the rule of law while this complicated process plays out.”
For most people, it has played out in favor of marriage equality. A Gallup Poll in May said 55 percent of American adults think same-sex marriage should be legal, compared to 42 who did not. That gap had widened by September, when a CBS/New York Times Poll said 56 percent of American adults believe same-sex marriage should be legal, compared to 37 who did not. And younger adults overwhelming believe in legality — 78 percent, according to the Gallup Poll in May.
A statement today from one of Indiana’s largest and most well known businesses, Eli Lilly and Co., made a plea that state officials see the futility of continuing to fight this issue of human rights.
”There are important issues that need to be addressed by the Legislature,” the statement said, “and any effort on this issue would be disruptive and a waste of time.”
This is not an issue being pushed by liberals that should be fought off by conservative Republicans for any legitimate reason.
Besides being about human rights, it’s also been about economic issues that include demonstrating the state welcomes people no matter what their sexual orientation. This has been recognized by many in the usually moderate to conservative business community, including the brass at Eli Lilly, Cummins, the Indy Chamber of Commerce, Indiana University and more. They want to attract the best and the brightest to come to Indiana.
The evidence is mounting that opponents to marriage equality are on the wrong side of history. It’s time for state leaders, from the governor through the amendment-seeking legislators through the attorney general to stand down.