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The road to marriage equality has been long and winding, with as many set-backs as steps forward. It's thanks to the work of thousands—plaintiffs and lawyers, activists and everyday LGBT people and allies—that we've arrived at this point, but there are a number who, intentionally or not, found themselves in the eye of the storm.
As we await the Supreme Court's ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, the case expected to establish same-sex marriage across the country, Out spoke with 11 trailblazing heroes of the marriage equality movement. Some offered their reflections on the journey up to this point, while others looked ahead to the future of equality in America.
Photos via Out and Twitter/AOL
“In the wake of Prop 8, we saw this explosion of grassroots anger and organization that shifted the strategy to one of demanding full federal equality, something opposed by almost all our national groups and allies in the Democratic party. Our leaders said the country wasn’t ready, and yet here we are today, on the cusp of such an amazing victory. It’s important for ordinary LGBT people to know that they made it happen, that they should get the credit for it. This was a situation where virtually none of our leaders were leading, and so the people led.”
Cleve Jones is a long-time LGBT and AIDS rights activist. A close friend of Harvey Milk, he created the NAMES AIDS Project AIDS Quilt Memorial and co-founded the San Francisco AIDS Foundation.
"When I first wrote my call to fight for the freedom to marry back in 1983, I believed that claiming the vocabulary of marriage would be an engine of transformation that would move non-gay people in their understanding, and thus advance gay people's place in society and under the law. In the Freedom to Marry campaign I've led since, I always said it would take a long time, but when you're younger, your idea of long is shorter. America could have gotten here sooner (and we have further to go), but the transformation has been profound and, by historical standards, swift. Now we must harness the power of the marriage conversation and victory to the work that remains in every corner of the country (and around the world!)."
Evan Wolfson is the President and Founder of Freedom to Marry, an advocacy organization dedicated to securing marriage equality for LGBT Americans. He worked formerly as an attorney for Lambda Legal, winning the landmark Hawaii marriage case in 1996.
“At a personal level, I’ve learned wisdom, generosity, and forgiveness from leaders like Evan Wolfson, Mary Bonauto, David Mixner and many others. The opportunities to help with AFER and the Supreme Court amicus briefs, state marriage efforts, ENDA, and the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell convince me there are many first time allies in places we might not expect, who can be incredibly valuable to achieving equality. I hope to be able to continue assisting this important work.“
Ken Mehlman served in George W. Bush's presidential administration during his first term, and was then recommended by the president to run the Republican National Committee, which he did for two years. In 2010, he came out as gay, and since then has worked to rally high-profile Republicans, first to repeal Don't Ask Don't Tell, and then for the cause of marriage equality.
"I don't think any gay person, certainly of my generation or older, can think about what’s happening today without taking into account what life was like not so long ago, for so many of us. If someone had told me 15 years ago that we'd be sitting where we are, I'd have told them they were absolutely, totally crazy. And if they had said that I’d be the one fighting for this at the Supreme Court, I’d have said they should probably be in a straight-jacket, or at least heavily medicated."
Roberta Kaplan was the attorney for Edie Windsor in United States v. Windsor, the suit that saw the Supreme Court strike down Section 3 of DOMA. Her book, Then Comes Marriage: United States v. Windsor and the Defeat of DOMA, is set for release in October.
"Although Thea and I were 'engaged to marry' in 1967, we saw it as symbolic of our love and commitment. We didn’t expect to be able to marry in our lifetime, and made a great many preparations to protect each other in the likely case that one would die first.
I am proud that I was the plaintiff in the defeat of DOMA, and very proud of my lawyer. Not only does a much larger portion of the “straight” world see us differently, but LGBT people have come out and seen each other in a way that makes me courageous and proud and joyous every day."
Edie Windsor was the plaintiff who brought the case United States v. Windsor to the Supreme Court. Windsor married her longterm partner, Thea Spyer, in Canada in 2007, a legal ceremony that was recognized in New York State following a 2008 court decision. However, when Spyer died in 2009, leaving her entire estate to Windsor, Section 3 of DOMA prevented Windsor from estate tax exemption provided to married couples, leading her to file a federal lawsuit.
"Today, on the precipice of true marriage equality for all, we stand by and with the thousands of people past and present who made this moment possible. We love that we got to play a special role in the fight, but we know that every single contribution was, and continues to be, important. It all matters!"
Sandy Stier and Kristin Perry made up one half of the suit against Prop 8, Hollingsworth v. Perry, along with Paul Katami and Jeffrey Zarrillo. Stier and Perry had already been together for seven years when they first tried to marry in 2004, when San Francisco's mayor began issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. In 2009, they tried again and were denied because of the success of Prop 8. The two sued, eventually making their way to the Supreme Court, where their case succeeded in bringing marriage equality back to California.
"It’s thanks to so many people standing up and living their truth out loud that we’ve reached this place. In the past, it was easy to demonize the idea of what it means to be LGBTQ, but now we are more visible, more open, and more willing to correct the lies and misrepresentations of our community—and that allows our humanity to be understood."
Paul Katami and Jeffrey Zarillo were one half of the couples involved in Hollingsworth v. Perry, the suit against Prop 8 that reached the United State Supreme Court. They had been together for 10 years when they decided they wanted to marry in their home state of California. Because Prop 8 prevented it, they joined Sandy Stier and Kristin Perry in their suit against the State of California.
"Six years ago, I was fueled by the struggle for marriage equality to promise LGBT people full federal equality from the stage of the Oscars. It was a promise that met with heavy criticism from some of my heroes in the movement, who branded it unrealistic. But as we sit here on the cusp of realizing our bold marriage equality goal, we must not forget that full equality for LGBTQ people will not have been achieved until we can all live openly without the threat of losing our homes, our jobs, and our lives... no matter where we live in this country, or the world."
Dustin Lance Black is the Oscar-award winning screenwriter of Milk. Following the passage of Prop 8 in 2008, which took away Californian LGBT people's right to marry, he co-founded the American Foundation for Equal Rights (AFER), which succeeded in bringing the appeals of two sets of couples, Sandy Stier and Kristin Perry and Paul Katami and Jeffrey Zarillo, to the Supreme Court.
"This historic moment once seemed impossible. Our country is no longer evolving on marriage equality—our country has evolved, and now it's just a question of those Supreme Court justices making sure our laws catch up. But today, our progress serves as a reminder of just how far we have to go. True giants—advocates, litigators and plaintiffs—have gotten us to this point, as have the millions of brave individuals who have come out, spoken their truth, and moved the nation. But as long as simply being LGBT can get you fired or evicted—as long as it can be used to discriminate against you—we still are not equal under the law. And while I’m confident there’s going to be a lot to celebrate in the coming days, beyond marriage equality, it's our job to remember that our work isn't done until full, federal equality is a reality from coast to coast."
Chad Griffin is the President of Human Rights Campaign (HRC). After Prop 8, Griffin helped found the American Foundation for Equal Rights (AFER), which led the legal campaign to re-legalize marriage in Califronia. In 2012, he left AFER for the HRC.
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