Today, the Supreme Court of the United States issued its hotly anticipated ruling in the Obergefell v. Hodges case, and has finally given our community the marriage equality we have so earnestly sought. The Court has ruled for the freedom to marry nationwide by declaring that it is unconstitutional to bar same-sex couples from marriage.
We hold up our glasses of bubbly to toast to every single one of you for your voice.
It has taken all of us working together to achieve this historic milestone. To every single gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer person who has ever had the courage to declare their identity out loud so that the person next to them could know that they have connected with a member of the LGBTQ community, thank you. To each LGBTQ couple who has shared photos of their engagement or wedding on social media or with our magazine to give a lasting impression of how absolutely stunning and “normal” our love is, thank you. To every LGBTQ couple who has suffered and stumbled through grief and divorce, showing that our love can crumble and isn’t perfect either, thank you. To our leaders who have tirelessly fought and advocated for marriage equality—even when the money and the gratitude wasn’t there, thank you. To our straight allies who have stood up for the freedom to marry, even before it was the cool thing to do. Thank you. To our families who don’t kick us out of your homes, who walk us down the aisle, who attend our weddings, who raise their glasses, who hug us and kiss us and make us feel like we’re just as good as the rest of America, thank you. To every one of the Justices who saw fit to honor us as equal citizens of the United States of America today, thank you.
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Take a look at the gay, lesbian, transgender, queer and bisexual weddings we’ve featured since we launched in 2010.
Photo: HonestCooking.com
