Wednesday, May 21, 2014

Not If... But When

Just yesterday, we talked about two more to fall. Now, we can add another one to the pile: Pennsylvania. No really, Pennsylvania is the latest state where a federal court struck down its marriage ban.

As we were discussing yesterday, marriage equality is increasingly becoming a legal reality for the entire nation. And it's only a matter of time before it arrives in Nevada.

When the US Supreme Court issued its US v. Windsor ruling, it made clear that anti-LGBTQ discrimination would no longer be welcomed there. And since that ruling, we've had this long string of federal judges issuing rulings in favor of equality. That's certainly not a coincidence. Lower federal courts tend to take their queues from "The Supremes".

And it's not a coincidence that Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto (D) & Governor Brian Sandoval (R) decided to drop their legal defense of marriage discrimination this past February. The original defendants in Sevcik v. Sandoval had tried to make their case in court, but that only blew up in their faces. They ultimately had to realize that they truly had no Constitutional ground to stand on, so they stood down.

It's no longer a question of if... But rather, when. When will Question 2 finally be tossed into the dustbin of history? When will Nevada's marriage ban be declared unconstitutional? When will marriage equality arrive in The Silver State?

Just two years ago, Sevcik v. Sandoval seemed like a long shot. But now, it's feeling more like a slam dunk. But really, this was bound to happen. Eventually, public opinion would catch up with Constitutional law.

And it's no longer a question of if it will arrive here... But when.

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