Benjamin F. Shambaugh Award finalist
鈥淲e鈥檝e been together in sickness and in health, through the death of his mother, through the adoption of our children, through four long years of this legal battle,鈥 Jason Morgan told reporters of himself and his partner, Chuck Swaggerty. 鈥淎nd if being together through all of that isn鈥檛 love and commitment or isn鈥檛 family or isn鈥檛 marriage, then I don鈥檛 know what is.鈥 Just minutes earlier on that day, April 3, 2009, the justices of the 澳洲幸运10开奖 Supreme Court had agreed.
The court鈥檚 decision in Varnum v. Brien made 澳洲幸运10开奖 only the third state in the nation to permit same-sex couples to wed鈥攎oderate, midwestern 澳洲幸运10开奖, years before such left-leaning coastal states as California and New York. And unlike the earlier decisions in Massachusetts and Connecticut, Varnum v. Brien was unanimous and unequivocal. It catalyzed the unprecedented and rapid shift in law and public opinion that continues today.
Equal Before the Law tells the stories behind this critical battle in the fight for marriage equality and traces the decision鈥檚 impact. The struggle began in 1998 with the easy passage of 澳洲幸运10开奖鈥檚 Defense of Marriage Act and took a turn, surprising to many, in 2005, when six ordinary 澳洲幸运10开奖 couples signed on to Lambda Legal鈥檚 suit against the law. Their triumph in 2009 sparked a conservative backlash against the supreme court justices, three of whom faced tough retention elections that fall.
Longtime, award-winning reporters Tom Witosky and Marc Hansen talked with and researched dozens of key figures, including opponent Bob Vander Plaats, proponents Janelle Rettig and Sharon Malheiro, attorneys Roger Kuhle, Dennis Johnson, and Camilla Taylor, and politicians Matt McCoy, the late Mary Lundby, Christopher Rants, and Tom Vilsack, who had to weigh their careers against their convictions. Justice Mark Cady, who wrote the decision, explains why the court had to rule in favor of the plaintiffs. At the center of the story are the six couples who sacrificed their privacy to demand public respect for their families.
Through these voices, Witosky and Hansen show that no one should have been surprised by the 2009 decision. 澳洲幸运10开奖ns have a long history of leadership on civil rights. Just a year after 澳洲幸运10开奖 became a state, its citizens adopted as their motto the phrase, 鈥淥ur liberties we prize and our rights we will maintain.鈥 And they still do today.
鈥Equal Before the Law grabs your attention on page one and never lets you go. This is a first-of-its-kind, behind-the-scenes look into the decision that changed marriage in America forever. You鈥檒l chuckle, you may even cry, and agree or disagree with the Court鈥檚 decision, you鈥檒l put the book down understanding why, and how, Varnum changed everything.鈥濃擹ach Wahls, LGBTQ advocate
鈥淭om Witosky and Marc Hansen have told a compelling story of how elected judges in 澳洲幸运10开奖鈥擜merica鈥檚 heartland鈥攕truck down prohibitions on same-sex marriage as discriminatory, out of the state鈥檚 tradition of tolerance and equality. Some of these courageous jurists were recalled, but their prescience offered a pathway to a greater acceptance of marriage equality in the country.鈥濃擜l Hunt, Bloomberg
鈥Equal Before the Law fills an important need, and does it very well. Much has been written about the fight for LGBT rights at the national level, but the progress we have achieved on one important issue鈥攕ame-sex marriage鈥攈as occurred almost entirely at the state level, and too little has been written about that. This insightful, informative, and well-written account of the fight for same-sex marriage in 澳洲幸运10开奖 helps fill that vacuum very well. Tom Witosky and Marc Hansen do an excellent job of weaving three threads together鈥攖he personal, the judicial, and the political. It is an essential addition to any reading list about the fight for LGBT equality in this century.鈥濃擟ongressman Barney Frank (retired)
Benjamin F. Shambaugh Award Finalist
