My friends –

With hope that you are well and staying safe despite these surreal and difficult times, I write once again to share with you my thoughts after another important US election. The American people have spoken.

Congratulations, President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris! Mazel tov, America.

Defeating Trump was our necessary first step away from a descent into authoritarianism. The damage done is real, and threats remain, but we, the People, took action and pulled the United States back from the brink. Now, with a new president, we all must work to lift our country up toward its ideals; beat back the pandemic, oligarchy, and injustice; reinvigorate and strengthen our democracy and institutions; address our divisions; and move forward to a more perfect union and better future for all.

We have a lot to do and this is a time to go big and bold, with urgency, knowing that it will take time. More on that below, but first, let's celebrate this election.

I.

The American people have never supported Trump. Despite a majority against him in 2016, he eked out a win in the Electoral College only due to Russian interference and clumsy news reporting of an overhyped and ultimately illusory purported scandal about email. Trump is the only US president never to have hit 50% in the polls throughout his entire time in public life, and the first to lose the popular vote twice. Americans turned out in record numbers during a pandemic, overcoming voter suppression, to repudiate him now.

Democrats have now won the most votes in seven of the past eight presidential elections, something no party has been able to do since the formation of the modern party system in 1828. The vote against Trump in 2016 is even higher than the vote for Clinton over Trump in 2016. Across our country, Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Nebraska’s 2nd congressional district all flipped to vote for Biden/Harris.

Trump is the first one-term loser in a generation, and Biden has become the first challenger to defeat an incumbent in 28 years. The affirmation that in a true democracy, the people can vote out an incumbent, is a message again heard around the world.

II.

Joe Biden selected, and the American people elected as our next Vice President, the first woman, the first African-American, the first Asian-American. Another message to young people everywhere: See yourself. Believe. Engage. Win.

III.

And as of today, even the Senate is still within reach, with the races in Alaska and North Carolina still undetermined, and — call to action! — two run-offs in newly purple Georgia. This means that on January 5 we all have a chance to decide which party will lead the Senate, helping the voters of Georgia choose for good governance rather than obstruction. A top priority now.

IV.

The fact that all of this didn't come through immediately and clearly is because of our cumbersome elections processes (and some partisan sabotage), and because of the flawed, non-majoritarian, and antiquated American electoral system (the archaic Electoral College, gerrymandering, and the increasingly non-representative Senate), which skews against the Democrats and distorts our politics. These and other structural problems will require our creative and sustained attention in the years ahead.

V.

We hoped for even more — that’s what patriots do — and we face real difficulties. To quote Ijeoma Olua, “This election doesn't change the work we need to do, it just determines how much harder that work may be." Before us now is the work of governing, of tackling big problems with boldness, of continued organizing, and, yes, of persuasion. Heavy lifting ahead, but, as Robert Reich put it, "I am nauseously optimistic." Despite our country’s challenges and our divisions at this time of pandemic, polarization, inequality, and disinformation, the 2020 election has delivered a repudiation of Trump and a mandate for leadership and for effective government. A new chapter — in a long story — begins.

VI.

Abraham Lincoln told us, “We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.”

This is not only an appeal to history and hope, to patriotism, it is also a reminder that we have to pierce — as we’d say today — silos and bubbles, passions, to re-center facts, sustain conversation, increase understanding, and reconnect with each other as Americans. For liberal democracy to survive, and for us to thrive, we must strive, where possible, to restore our bonds in common purpose, transcending disagreement, too, in shared and expanded civic space. And, at the same time, one of my rules of activism is: you don't need every, you just need enough.

As you all know, we didn’t win the freedom to marry easily, or over night. But we did win. People can rise to fairness. Change can happen.

We are now called to work to heal where we can, overcome what we must, lift up the truth, establish justice and accountability, protect democracy, and, yes, build back better. And we can. We are Americans.

Please be well, and stay safe, and keep going in hope –

Evan

From The Oral History Center: "At the center of the effort to change hearts and minds, prevail in the courts and legislatures, win at the ballot, and win at the Supreme Court was Freedom to Marry, the national campaign launched by Harvard-trained attorney Evan Wolfson in 2003. Freedom to Marry’s national strategy focused from the beginning on setting the stage for a nationwide victory at the Supreme Court. Working with national and state organizations and allied individuals and organizations, Freedom to Marry succeeded in building a critical mass of states where same-sex couples could marry and a critical mass of public support in favor of the freedom to marry. This oral history project focuses on the pivotal role played by Freedom to Marry and their closest state and national organizational partners, as they drove the winning strategy and inspired, grew, and leveraged the work of a multitudinous movement.

"The Freedom to Marry Oral History Project produced 23 interviews totaling nearly 100 hours of recordings. Interviewees include: Evan Wolfson, founder of Freedom to Marry; Kate Kendell, executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights; James Esseks, director of the ACLU’s LGBT & HIV project; and Thalia Zepatos, the movement’s “message guru” who worked at Freedom to Marry as director of research and messaging. Read on for video clips of the interviews and links to complete interview transcripts."

I won’t sugarcoat this: The election was a catastrophe and much of what we all care about and have worked for, our country, and even the world are in real danger.

Like pretty much everyone I heard or know, I was wrong about how it would go, so it’s okay to take a moment for some understandable grieving, and some humility. But it’s also a time to reach for clear-sightedness about what is good and remains good, belief in what is possible, and regrouping and recommitting to the work ahead to secure the world we want.

We will have to listen, learn, think, and move forward. We will have to organize, persuade, evoke values, and when needed, fight for what we love.

We don't know the full contours of what we will face, we don’t have easy answers, we don't immediately know the pathway – but we still have our lives, our luck, our voices, our hearts, our inheritance, our loved ones, and many others who share our hopes and values.

This is still the country that elected one of our finest presidents, the first African-American to be elected president – not once, but twice.

This is still the country in which a despised and oppressed minority could believe, organize, work, change hearts and minds and then the law, and win the freedom to marry.

And it is still the country where the majority of voters sought to elect a woman as president. Even the minority of voters who chose Trump are not all the same, nor did they all vote for the same things.

What happened was bad enough. Let’s not paralyze ourselves or empower our opponents by making it worse than it is.

Right now, many same-sex couples fear what the Trump administration may mean for their families, so let me state categorically: The freedom to marry is the law of the land – and no one will take that away from us.

Those who have gotten married, and those who get married, will remain married, and no one will set them asunder. The Williams Institute reports that more than 1 million gay people have married in the United States. There is no action the incoming administration could take, even if they wanted to, that would undo the thousands of marriages lawfully celebrated in all 50 states. Nor is there any threat to marriage laws in states where we secured the freedom to marry through the legislature or at the ballot box.

No act of Congress or presidential fiat – even if they wanted to – could overturn the Supreme Court ruling that affirmed the freedom to marry nationwide. Supreme Court justices do not lightly overturn precedents, and it is even very unlikely for the question to come before the Court; courts don’t just issue opinions, they rule on cases properly brought.

And, of course, we won in the courts of law because we won first, through hard work and engagement, in the court of public opinion. A super-majority of Americans support the freedom to marry. That has not changed.

This doesn’t mean we need not be vigilant, or can retreat into complacency. Marriage is important – and is here to stay – and is still a powerful vocabulary for building empathy and support to be harnessed to the other fronts on which we fight. Yes, winning marriage was important – but engagement is key. We must all stay engaged.

There are, as always, challenges ahead, and what looms before us is uncertain and big. But our movement and our country have met and overcome challenges before.

We won because we marshaled the three key elements of success: Hope, Clarity, and Tenacity. No doubt tenacity will be needed; we have a long road ahead. Right now, we may not have full clarity, but we will get there again soon as the new landscape takes shape. And we must start with, and convey, hope. We must move from reeling to rallying.

We will get through this. We must – for our country, for our community, for those we love and all we believe in. As the song goes, “Twilight descends, everything ends…'til tomorrow, tomorrow.”

Onward --

Evan Wolfson
Founder, Freedom to Marry

The 140-page thesis served as a guideline for Wolfson's 2004 book Why Marriage Matters: America, Equality, and Gay People's Right to Marry and a roadmap to the founding of Freedom to Marry,

Looking back on writing the thesis, Evan reflected on the process:

"In 1983, as a recently returned Peace Corps volunteer and young law student, I wrote my paper because I believed then, as ever since, that marriage matters, that we can learn from history, and that change is possible, and believed that by claiming the resonant vocabulary of marriage - love, commitment, connectedness, and freedom - we could transform non-gay people's understanding of who gay people are and why exclusion and discrimination are wrong. There is a power in aspiring to make a difference and a power in ideas. As more gay and non-gay people have engaged, the freedom to marry for loving gay couples is an idea whose time has truly come." 

You can read the entire thesis here, and check out a few key excerpts from the thesis: 

"Marriage, as a commitment and a statement, evokes ... core constitutional concerns for every individual, and for society as a whole. For gay lovers, whose very self and social definition involves an expressive act of love, the issue is paramount.... For individuals who wish a public commitment of love and life together with the partner of their choice, this failure [to accord the freedom to marry] is oppressive, in real terms, not just in principle. Because such a denial is also immoral and unconstitutional, it is time to recognize samesex marriage with equal respect and joy."

"By abolishing ... discrimination and permitting full and equal self-expression on the part of all lovers for all beloveds ... we will create a society more safely and richly founded on our individual freedom and equality. Such a society, where people are equally free to love and choose according to the dictates of their heart, best promotes the just and moral pursuit of happiness."

"Constitutional human rights and the fundamental needs of each person compel the recognition of samesex marriages as equal in legality and worth to those between men and women. It is time that our society's attitudes toward sexuality focus on the "quality of love, not the gender of the parties involved or the biological function of their affection." The interests of gay lovers in getting married are the same as any others seeking marriage: an occasion to express their sense of self and their commitment to another human; a chance to establish and plan a life together, partaking of the security, benefits, and reinforcement society provides; and an opportunity to deepen themselves and touch immortality through sexuality, transcendence, and love."

"The Constitution morally respects the freedom of individuals to create, live, and love in the happiness they can make for themselves in the world, consonant with the rights of others. Marriage, the social recognition and approbation of one such choice, is an institution of much value to many. People are born different, into different circumstances, but are inherently equal in moral terms and in the eyes of the law, as our Constitution confirms. According this equality is perhaps most vital·when it comes to love, the great leveler, which comes to each of us not wholly by choice or design. The choice we do and should have is what to make of what we are. For gay women and men, who also love, samesex marriage is a human aspiration, and a human right. The Constitution and real morality demand its recoggition. By freeing gay individuals as our constitutional morality requires, we will more fully free our ideas of love, and thus more fully free ourselves."

Read the thesis here.

Evan Wolfson, president of Freedom to Marry, stressed the importance of this ruling:

Today's ruling affirms that gay people may not be denied the basic human right to form families and requires that all signatories to the European Convention on Human Rights treat their committed relationships with respect and protection under the law. It immediately raises the bar in countries that currently provide no legal recognition for same-sex partners, and also brings Europe another big step closer to the freedom to marry continent-wide. By talking neighbor to neighbor about who gay people are and why marriage matters, as we did here and our counterparts have done across Europe, from the Netherlands in 2001 to Ireland in May, we will see a critical mass of European states with the freedom to marry and the realization of full equality for hundreds of millions.

Twenty-four of the 47 countries in the Council of Europe currently have civil union or marriage for same-sex couples.

Freedom to Marry applauds this ruling, and looks forward to the day that all countries in Europe -- and the world -- welcome marriage for same-sex couples.

The Supreme Court ruling striking down marriage bans nationwide on June 26 was perfectly timed with the release of Love is Love, the photo book compilation of Mitch and Shalem's national roadtrip to catalog photos of same-sex couples. The book features dozens of full-page photographs and stories of same-sex couples included in the project. Love is Love is a beautiful celebration of love, an affirmation of people who have committed their lives to each other, a reminder that the nationwide discussion over the freedom to marry involved real people, and a loud, strong, compelling - and simple - declaration: love is love.

"The Love is Love Project began in the summer of 2012 in Anchorage, Alaska as a simple project to photograph local LGBTQ couples in response to prejudice some Alaska couples faced," Mitch and Shalem write in the introduction to their book. "The huge success of the initial project has grown into a nation-wide project, photographing couples in almost every state, showing that love is love one story at a time."

You can buy Love is Love, the book, and support Mitch and Shalem's great work, here. And below, read our Q&A with Mitch Kitter, co-creator of Love is Love, and see some of the great photos from the project. 

Freedom to Marry: You've been working on this project for so long. How does it feel to hold the published copy of the book version in your hands? 

Mitch Kitter: It was so cool to have all of the images together and finished in the book. On the road, you are meeting each couple day to day and are having so much fun photographing them, but you don't realize how large the collection is all together. Seeing them all together was really beautiful, to see them printed.

Freedom to Marry: The Love is Love project has spanned several years, including the recent victory-filled years of the marriage fight. What has it been like to watch the country change while working on your project? 

Mitch: It's so interesting how fast these feelings have changed and the law has changed. When we started the project, there was marriage equality in just eight states, and basically when the book came out, the Supreme Court ruling came and we have marriage everywhere. Even going from the 8 or 9 to the 35 in such a short amount of time [in October 2014] was huge.

Freedom to Marry: What has your experience been like getting to know the families who you've photographed? 

Mitch: It's been so cool to watch these couples grow in their relationships and grow in their families over the past few years. Now, four of the couples have had babies since they were photographed, and it's so cute to see these families growing and be recognized by the law for their relationship. It's been great to see that happening. It's great to see the commitment and longevity of the relationships that we photographed.

Freedom to Marry: What do you think are the next steps for the LGBT movement? 

Mitch: We still have a ways to go with non-discrimination protections. That's an area we would love to see change. This project humanizes the LGBT community and allows people to connect to the story. When you stop and get to know a single person and get to build a relationship with hat person, it can change your perspective. We would like to help continue forward, to share the stories of these couples and individuals in the future so that workplace equality can be the next step. We've had the opportunity to photograph so many great couples, but there's also a time to document the transgender community. Transgender individuals and families are an area where we could continue to document and photograph.

Freedom to Marry: And what's next for the Love is Love project?

Mitch: Eventually, we'd like to get to all 50 states. We'll be pursuing a grant or a shorter Kickstarter campaign. We have fourteen states left to get to, so it may be a project for 2016. It's like we'll be documenting this time before, during, and following a national marriage ruling. Just ten years ago, people barely thought this would be possible, so now we have this first generation of same-sex couples able to get married, and it's important to document those stories and the love that they share for each other.

Get your copy of the Love is Love book here!

The morning of Friday, June 26, Lex was at work at her job with the Southern Poverty Law Center. The day was starting out like any other, until she heard a coworker across the room say something excitedly: “Gay marriage is legal!" 

The ruling from the United States Supreme Court had come down just minutes before, and she dropped everything to call her wife, Amy and tell her the huge news – that their marriage was respected everywhere in the nation, including their home state of Alabama.

“Minutes later, my father, who is 80 years old, called me and left several voicemails telling me the news,” Amy laughed. “We all celebrated that evening!”

Amy and Lex met in 2008 at Pensacola Pride, and the rest was history – they were friends for several years, and then, in 2011, they realized there was something more between them, and began dating. Five years after meeting, Lex proposed to Amy at Atlanta Pride in Piedmont Park. 

“We had a year-long engagement, planning our dream wedding with our friends and family,” Lex said. Their wedding preparation was a lot more public than some couples’ – Amy and Lex were featured on TLC’s reality TV show Say Yes to the Dress. The show follows brides as they decide on their wedding dresses, and Amy and Lex both had to make that decision! “We both said yes to two dresses,” Lex said. 

Their wedding ceremony, held in their hometown of Montgomery in 2013, was beautiful. “We went on a wonderful honeymoon to the Dominican Republic,” Lex remembered. “In January of 2014, we made our marriage legal in New York City, and after that, we began planning to have a family.”

Now, Lex and Amy are getting ready for just that – they are expecting their first child this month. “We are very excited and can’t wait to meet him!” Lex said. They plan to have more children in the future, with Lex carrying the next baby.

With their marriage finally respected, once and for all, in the state they love, the couple feels ready for the next stage in their life.

“It feels amazing to know that I am going to be on my child’s birth certificate and that I have the same rights as any expectant parent,” Lex said. “It also feels great to have the same rights as any other married couple. The Supreme Court ruling came at the right time.”

Watch the moving video here:

The video begins with President Barack Obama's speech from June 26, after the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of the freedom to marry nationwide. "Progress in this journey often comes in small increments," President Obama said in his address. "Sometimes, two steps forward, one step back, propelled by the persistent effort of dedicated citizens. And then some times there are days like this, when that slow, steady effort is rewarded with justice that arrives like a thunderbolt."

President Obama's speech rings true to what activists for the freedom to marry have seen throughout the years as we worked towards this sweeping victory -- that it was a result of careful, planned execution over decades.

Before Marriage: Learning From the Past

Just decades ago, LGBT people were sometimes arrested just for being who they were -- something that was resisted during the 1969 Stonewall protests and with the 2003 case Lawrence v. Texas. The American government, for many years, downplayed the importance of LGBT rights, and the American public, at times, deplored the love that same-sex couples feel for each other. For many LGBT activists, the freedom to marry was not something to be considered necessary.

The First Fights for Marriage

But, even then, same-sex couples had begun fighting for their freedom to marry, applying for marriage licenses as early as the 1970s. Court cases arguing for same-sex couples' right to marriage began at that time as well -- but the results were indicative of the need to alter courts' perceptions of what it meant for same-sex couples to marry. The country did not yet understand that LGBT couples' love is the same as any other -- built on commitment, trust, and devotion.

Evan Wolfson Sees Power in Marriage Movement

In 1983, Evan Wolfson, who would later become the founder and president of Freedom to Marry, wrote his thesis on the freedom to marry, arguing for the necessity of marriage being available to same-sex couples in America. "I believed that our fight for the freedom to marry would be an engine of transformation," Evan explains in the video.

Still, Evan's colleagues in the LGBT rights fight were unsure that the freedom to marry was the answer for the movement at that point.

Marriage in the Courts: The First Case

Then, in 1993, Hawaii ruled in favor of the freedom to marry for a same-sex couple -- the first time a state court had ruled for same-sex couples' love. Although this ruling was momentous, it was never able to take effect - the first anti-marriage ballot initiative was passed in the state, preempting the freedom to marry. After the defeat of this first marriage win, and the signing of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act in 1996, it became clear that marriage could not only be won in the courts. The movement needed to work on winning the hearts and minds of America's public, as well - and that's where Freedom to Marry was born.

Developing the Roadmap

Freedom to Marry's goal was to win the freedom to marry nationwide, bringing marriage to same-sex couples across the country over time by whatever method necessary - in the courts, in the legislatures, and at the ballot. At the same time, it was important to work toward helping win the case for the freedom to marry in the court of public opinion, helping the average citizen to see that same-sex couples deserve the same responsibilities and protections of marriage as everyone else. 

Throughout the years since Freedom to Marry's conception, there were repeated setbacks - several political leaders publicly argued against the freedom to marry or called for a dreadful "Federal Marriage Amendment," voters in California passed Proposition 8, and mean-spirited constitutional amendments were passed in many states. But we began to see real momentum in 2004, when Massachusetts became the first state to welcome the freedom to marry, followed by advances for same-sex couples' rights in many other states. These legislative battles and court cases made it clear that the Freedom to Marry plan was working.

Then, two years ago, when the so-called Defense of Marriage Act was repealed by the United States Supreme Court, and the freedom to marry was returned to same-sex couples in California -- we began to see that we were closer than ever to winning marriage nationwide.

Victory: The Freedom to Marry Comes to America

These moments, small and large, resulted in the emotional and momentus victory last month, when the United States Supreme Court finally made thousands of same-sex couples' dreams a reality and ruled in favor of the freedom to marry nationwide. This wonderful, correct ruling was, as we've seen, the result of all of us working tirelessly, planning for, fighting for, and achieving what some said was impossible -- the freedom to marry for everyone in America.

"We convinced the nation that Love is Love," the video narrates. "This was our journey, together, with a movement of many, a shared strategy we stuck to, a campaign to drive that strategy and spearhead that movement. We learned. We built. We rebounded. We kept going."

Don't miss the video, here.

The event's lead sponsors were longtime partner SKYY Vodka and The Advocate/Here Media. And the celebration was organized in coordination with four Organizational Co-Chairs, vital legal partners who have made the case for the freedom to marry in court: the American Civil Liberties Union LGBT & AIDS Project, Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, Lambda Legal, and the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

The Celebration, held at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City, was also sponsored by Blue State Digital, Civitas Public Affairs Group, and Holland & Knight. Special thanks to the Event Host Committee for their work. 

Quick Links: Freedom to Marry Celebration Event

• Evan Wolfson's Full Remarks
• Vice President Joe Biden's Full Remarks, Video, and Audio
• Photos from Event Attendees & Program
• Photos from Step-and-Repeat and SKYY Vodka

A Triumph of a Movement - and a Campaign

Just as the court victory represented a triumph of decades of work and thousands of individuals, Freedom to Marry's event brought together hundreds of stakeholders and contributors while honoring the long history of advocates who have fought for equality. Evan Wolfson, Freedom to Marry's founder and president, said in his remarks: 

We won under the Constitution, but, of course, the Constitution didn’t just fulfill its own promise. It took a movement to do that – so much work, sacrifice, trust, and hope to achieve this transformation, this triumph.

No one person alone, no one organization alone, no one state, no one case, no one methodology of social change, no one battle, no one decade alone did this. It took a whole movement to bring us to this victory. It took the Constitution and it took the country, millions of conversations and many battles that changed hearts and minds and helped the American people rise to fairness.

At the same time, this movement was not just a random series of episodes. There was a strategy that we stuck with, and there was a campaign built to drive that strategy and foster and leverage the movement. That campaign was Freedom to Marry.

Read Evan Wolfson's full remarks here. 

"They Love Each Other. It's Simple."

Freedom to Marry was thrilled to welcome Joe Biden, Vice President of the United States, for this joyous celebration. "I’ve never been so happy to be with an outfit that’s going out of business," VP Biden said in his remarks. He saluted Evan Wolfson, who met Biden while serving as a college intern in Biden's Senate office during the summer of 1976.  "I had more hair then and my movement days were still ahead of me," Evan said.

In his speech to the event attendees, VP Biden shared a poignant story about when he began to understand same-sex couples:

This has been a heroic battle, but it has been based on a very simple proposition best expressed at least to me by my dad when I was a 17-year-old kid. My dad was one of those — as the Irish say, the highest compliment you give someone is he was a good man. My dad was a good and decent man.

My dad pulled up [in a courthouse square in Wilmington] to let me run out and get an application for this job in the city, and then I was going to drive him to work and drive myself home. And as we were stopped at the light, two men on the right — very well-dressed men, obviously, business people working for either Hercules or DuPont turned and embraced one another and kissed each other. And they went their separate ways.

I’ll never forget. I turned and looked at my dad, just looked at him. And I’ll never forget what he said. He said, Joey, they love each other. It’s simple. They love each other. It’s simple.

That’s what this has been all about from the beginning.

The Vice President also described his time in the Senate Judiciary Committee fighting against the nomination of Robert Bork to the United States Supreme Court - and in doing so, recalled the words written by Evan Wolfson in his 1983 Harvard Law School thesis. 

In 1983, there was a Harvard Law essay making the constitutional case for marriage equality written by a young man, who wrote, and I want to quote. He said, “Human rights illuminate and radiate from the Constitution, shedding light on the central human values of freedom and equality.”

That was the basis upon which I took on Judge Bork. No, no, let me explain because this is an important proposition. Judge Bork and many conservatives, justices, and he was a brilliant man and a brilliant judge and a brilliant professor. But he believed there was no such thing as any un-enumerated right in the Constitution. Unless it was stated in the Constitution, it did not exist as a constitutionally protected right. 

And I remember the opening exchange he and I had. I hadn’t thought about it till I saw your comments. We started the debate in the opening round, and I said, Judge Bork, I’m going to characterize your position on constitutional interpretation and you tell me if I’m wrong.

And I said, you believe all the rights I have as an American, a human being emanate from the Constitution. And if they are not stated, I do not possess that right. And he said, that’s right.

 And I said, well, I believe I have certain inalienable rights merely because I’m a child of God — just because I exist. The government has given me nothing. Given me nothing. They’ve just guaranteed to protect what I’m guaranteed as a human being to have. All human rights, all human rights illuminate and radiate from the Constitution. That’s what this is all about.

 These were not words from an illustrious Supreme Court Chief Justice. These are the words of your institution’s founder. These are the words written by Evan Wolfson when he was in law school.  Pretty courageous for a 26-year-old kid at Harvard Law School when the future looked so dark and lonely.

A Musical Celebration of #LoveWins

Two special musical guests also joined us for the evening. Carly Rae Jepsen, singer of "Call Me Maybe" and "I Really Like You" performed a strong set that encouraged the crowd to dance and celebrate the enormous marriage victory. The Grammy-nominated singer certainly roused the audience with dancing and singing along for the festive celebration. 

Lena Hall, the Tony-winning Broadway star and performer (Hedwig and the Angry Inch) also performed two songs - a lovely rendition of "At Last" and a soaring "Somewhere Over the Rainbow."

The Fight Forward for the LGBT Movement

The evening was a wonderful celebration of the work that went into winning the freedom to marry nationwide - but it also served as a powerful reminder of the work that remains - and that we must commit to pursuing to ensure that LGBT Americans are truly and fully equal in their country. Since the marriage victory at the Supreme Court - in fact, since the very evening of the victory, in a rousing New York Times op-ed about the fight ahead - Evan Wolfson has been calling on the movement to harness the power of the marriage victory and push for comprehensive federal non-discrimination protections for LGBT Americans in all 50 states. 

"The Freedom to Marry campaign is over," he said in his remarks on Thursday. "But the work of our movement, of our country, is far from done. And at this high point in life, we must all commit that it won’t stop here."

Vice President Biden called for a renewed resolve to push toward non-discrimination, too. He said:

Although the freedom to marry — and for that marriage to be recognized in all 50 states — is now the law of the land, there are still 32 states where marriage can be recognized in the morning and you can be fired in the afternoon.

And I am absolutely confident that when the people and organizations in this room, and the President and I take this fight to the American people, we will win because all we have to do — all we have to do is let them know what the law allows now. Once people realize, this will end, as well. So we have to raise the issue up. We have to expose the darkness to justice. As the great Justice Brandeis once said, disinfectant — the best disinfectant is sunlight. 

So I want you to know this next door is going to be a hell of a lot easier to push open as long as we expose to average Americans the injustice that continues to exist. So let’s all recommit to shine a blazing light on the ugliness of employment discrimination.

The Power of a Driven, Strategic Campaign

Freedom to Marry has been proud to fight on the frontlines of the marriage movement for the past decade. And in order to push ahead so strategically, so pointedly, we have relied on the support and hard work of dozens of organizations, hundreds of individuals and hundreds of thousands of supporters. Thursday evening's Celebration was a testament to all of those players - the donors, the activists, the same-sex couples who talked about why marriage matters, the allies who supported their gay and lesbian friends and family members, the political leaders who fought on behalf of the community, the attorneys who took the case to court, the volunteers who ensured victory at the ballot, the legislators who supported the freedom to marry even in the early days of the fight, the plaintiffs who brought their stories forward in cases, and the millions of Americans who had conversations about why marriage matters.

Freedom to Marry is proud to have brought together this momentum. We are proud to be "going out of business." We are proud to have seen the country take such a wonderful, joyous leap forward. And we are proud to have worked for so long and so hard on an issue that so many Americans care about so deeply. Cheers to everyone who was a part of it - and thank you. 

The event will include performances by Tony Award-winning singer and actor Lena Hall and multi-platinum, Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Carly Rae Jepsen. Vice President Joe Biden, a longtime supporter of the freedom to marry, will deliver remarks during the program. Valerie Jarrett, senior advisor to the President, will also be in attendance.

Valerie Jarrett, senior advisor to the President, is also a strong supporter of the freedom to marry. In April, Jarrett attended Freedom to Marry's Plaintiff Event, which celebrated all of the families in legal cases that made the freedom to marry across the nation possible. While at the event, she applauded everyone who worked tirelessly to make this a possibility:

"I know that you have to put your lives on hold for something that's not just going to benefit you, but benefit so many other people, and so, on behalf of the millions of people around the country and around the world who your leadership symbolizes, thank you! Tomorrow we will watch a historic moment, and that history would not be possible without all of you. In our country we should be able to love anyone we want. The world is watching. We all need equal opportunity in this country, and we are all in this together."

Carly Rae Jepsen has been a supporter for LGBT rights for some time. In 2013, Jepsen canceled her performance at the Boy Scouts of America in response to their stance on banning gay members from joining. In addition, in a Time interview in 2012, Jepsen responded to a question about gay rights by saying "You know, acceptance has never even been a question to me. I’ve grown up knowing it’s just the way things should be."

Joe Biden will be presenting remarks on the freedom to marry, building on his long record of supporting marriage for all loving, committed couples. Read more about Joe Biden's history supporting LGBT rights here.

Lena Hall is also a supporter of the freedom to marry, joining hundreds of thousands of Americans who celebrated the Supreme Court's ruling with #lovewins.

CONGRATS TO ALL! The world just got a little better. Woo Hoo!!!!!! #lovewins #marriageequalityforall #Pride2015 pic.twitter.com/yFr6r2XokF

— Lena Hall (@LenaRockerHall) June 26, 2015

Freedom to Marry is delighted to be finally celebrating this long-awaited and triumphant victory -- for us as well as for all of America.

Tomorrow, Thursday, July 9, Freedom to Marry will host a special event celebrating the monumental and historic United States Supreme Court ruling last month that brought the freedom to marry to the entire nation. We are proud to welcome Vice President Joe Biden as a special guest at the event. The Vice President will deliver remarks at the event on the decades of work so many have devoted to winning the freedom to marry nationwide. 

On the day that the decision was announced by the United States Supreme Court, Vice Presiden Biden expressed his pride in the ruling:

Today, the Supreme Court affirmed that simple proposition—supported by a majority of Americans and a majority of our states—by recognizing that men marrying men and women marrying women are guaranteed the same civil rights and equal protection under our Constitution afforded to Jill and me, and to anyone else.

We couldn’t be prouder. Over the years—in their homes, on our staff, on the frontlines of war, and in houses of worship—Jill and I have befriended countless gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender Americans who share a love for their partners constrained only by social stigma and discriminatory laws. But today, their love is set free with the right to marry and the recognition of that marriage throughout the country.

This day is for them, their children, and their families. And it is for generations of advocates—gay, lesbian, transgender, straight—who for decades fought a lonely and dangerous battle. People of absolute courage who risked their lives, jobs, and reputations to come forward in pursuit of the basic right recognized today, but at a time when neither the country nor the courts would protect or defend them.

And this day is for history to remember as one where, as a nation, our laws finally recognize that all people should be treated with respect and dignity—and that all marriages, at their root, are defined by unconditional love.

Vice President Joe Biden has long been a supporter of the freedom to marry and LGBT rights. As early as 2003, he said that he thought that the freedom to marry was "inevitable," and in 2007, he reaffirmed his support for protecting same-sex couples, saying "government does have an obligation to guarantee that every individual is free of discrimination."

In 2009, during a Vice Presidential debate, Vice President Biden again supported equal rights for gay and lesbian couples. "Absolutely no distinction from a constitutional or legal standpoint between a same-sex and a heterosexual couple," he said. "...Same-sex couples should be able to have visitation rights in the hospitals, joint ownership of property, life insurance policies, etc."

In 2012, during a Meet the Press interview, Vice President Biden became the highest ranking public official in office to speak in favor of the freedom to marry, just a few days before President Obama announced his strong support.

Evan Wolfson, founder and president of Freedom to Marry, applauded Biden on this announcement, saying "The personal and thoughtful way he has spoken about his coming to support the freedom to marry reflects the same journey that a majority of Americans have now made as they’ve gotten to know gay families, opened their hearts and changed their minds."

Now, after the United States Supreme Court has, finally, ruled in favor of the freedom to marry for all loving, committed couples nationwide, Vice President Biden is celebrating with all of us!

Freedom to Marry applauds Vice President Biden for his continuous and solid support for marriage for same-sex couples, and looks forward to enjoying this victory with him tomorrow.

The focus of the event was to focus on past victories and movements within the LGBT community, which in some ways started with the first protests at Independence Hall in Philadelphia in 1965 through 1969.

Evan Wolfson explained why it was so important for us to appreciate movements before the marriage movement in the LGBT community:

I think what I'm taking from hearing this and having the honor of sharing the stage with pioneers who have inspired me and who I've learned from and in some cases worked with and historians whose books I've read is that history is important we have to know our history. And when we know our history, we fulfill an obligation, an inheritance that we are getting from those who went before us and paved the way, but it's not only that inheritance. There's instruction. We can learn from the tactics and the failures. And the struggles and the perseverance that others brought into the cause of bringing our country where it needs to be. And it's not only instruction, it's, perhaps most importantly, inspiration. Maybe the biggest lesson we can learn from the lives of all of us that have been committed to moving the country forward and changing justice is that you can do it. You don't always win, you're not always right, you don't always get it perfectly, and you're not alone, but if you stop cataloguing all the problems, if you stop listing all the things that are bad, if you stop seeing all the barriers and start seeing something that's better, and put yourself in to it, you can change things, and others will respond.

Panelists spoke of those original Philadelphia protests, as well as the Stonewall riots, which began 48 years ago, and the history of the AIDS movement. The information shared with the audience brought to light how all these different actions had led up to the United States Supreme Court making their historic ruling just two Fridays ago that finally brought the freedom to marry to all couples across the nation. Evan Wolfson pointed out how we could not have achieved such a huge victory without those before us:

It took a movement to do this. Not one person alone, not one organization alone, not just one state, not just one case, not just one methodology of social change, not just one battle, not just one decade. It took a whole movement to do this. But at the same time we can also learn from our history and from these stories that the movement was not just a random series of episodes. The movement actually had strategy. The movement had a vision. The movement had an idea of how we were going to get something done, and when we're talking about the freedom to marry win, emblematic as it is of so much of what we're taling about, there was a strategy that we followed, and there was a campaign built to drive that strtegy, and foster and leverage the movement.

Watch the full panel discussion and learn more about these important protests below:

PANEL ON JULY 3 NCC from Peter Lien on Vimeo.

Jessica Sutta, who is bisexual, was filled with joy when she heard the news that the freedom to marry was coming to the entire nation. The news was personal, emotional, and inspiring to her -- and proved what her music video was all about.

Jessica Sutta, formerly of the musical group The Pussycat Dolls, spoke to Freedom to Marry about what the ruling meant to her.

Q: What about love inspires you to speak out for the LGBT community?

Sutta: Love is love. When I fall in love with someone their gender is not a factor. It is their heart that wins me over. Love is universal. There are no rules or pre-conceptions other than the one's we create in our minds. I have fallen in love with hearts belonging to the female gender. Love does not have boundaries in its truest form and neither should marriage. I am so happy about this long overdue victory, for my friends, the LGBT community and most of all for humanity. We are one giant step closer to the global realization of the one thing that keeps us all connected...love.

Q: What were your goals with this music video?

Sutta: I really loved doing it. It was exactly what I wanted to accomplish with the music video. The song is just solely about love and finding love and seeing life through love. I just wanted to find the story of the song, and I wanted to do it with me not in it. I wanted it to be carried by the beautiful angelic girl who was the lead girl in it to show all the trials and tribulations of her life. Everything that she did she even though her parents were fighting, everything transcends with love. Even though she came home to fighting parents all the time, she was there to help the homeless, she would help the elderly, even though she was bullied, she still loved, and I think that’s just a beautiful message to spread, especially nowadays. Our world needs a lot of love.

Q: Why do you think it's important that you speak out on this issue?

Sutta: First of all, the LGBT community is everything to me. It’s been my platform for as long as I can remember. It’s partly because all my friends are gay, and I unfortunately had to watch them suffering all their lives for who they love. So it was always a passion for me to have a platform for people who couldn’t be heard. With everything happening with equality, I guess it was the right timing, but it was just basically to show that it’s time we see everything for the truth. That truth is we just need to see love. I think it would change the whole world.

Q: How was the idea for this music video created?

Sutta: When I sat with the director, Jose Omar, I said there’s a lot of pain and suffering happening in the world, especially in the LGBT community. I just would like to make a video that would touch hearts and would make people tear up. I don’t want to be dressed up in a little outfit dancing around, everyone’s seen that. I’d rather really help someone, so I guess that was kind of what we wanted to achieve with the music video. I feel like we really did, I really feel like it was very heartfelt, it’s very honest, I have an amazing cast of actors that really went there. They turned out chills on set, it was just so real. And I really thought that was really important, that the world really needs that.

Q: How do you think your music can work towards ensuring quality for the LGBT community?

Sutta: I’m very honest with my music. I think that music is that universal language of love and happiness. Everyone can get music. I’m really honest with my songwriting and the songwriters that I’ve worked with so I hope that people can heal through my experiences, because with Feline Resurrection my heart’s definitely out on the table, it’s out there for everyone to see, and I’m very honest with people. And I know music really helps me, especially with when I’m going through hard times in my life. So hopefully my album can heal people.

Q: Tell me about your new album!

Sutta: It’s called Feline Resurrection. I’m very excited. The whole phenomenon behind Feline Resurrection is, when a cat dies and it comes back to life, in this case it came back stronger than ever. It’s about throwing out the old and coming into the new. Because anybody has a second chance at life. Everyone has a chance to always make a difference, to always change, to always better themselves. And that’s how I feel about the album, what Feline Resurrection means to me making it and writing it. And just being a part of it and creating the music videos. It’s certainly exciting. we’re shooting a visual album on top of it, so all the music is going to be brought to life through music video, which I’m so excited about, and we’re definitely taking a lot of risks, and we’re really going there, so it really means a lot to me as an artist to have this creativity and this freedom.

Q: So where were you when you heard about the Supreme Court Ruling?

Sutta: I woke up to a text message from my friend Leo, and he said: "It passed." And then I went on Instagram, and it was like a rainbow. It was just such a victorious amazing feeling. I mean, I couldn’t stop crying for about an hour. Because it’s just felt like finally we took a big step and the United States. It’s not even a big step for just the LGBT community, it’s a step for mankind, because we’re all equal and we should just wake up and see that we’re all made up of the same stardust and we have to stop hating each other, and we’re destroying each other. I just feel like that was one of the biggest, most pivotal moments in history from our generation, and it was just one of the best days of my life. It’s something that I feel like we’ve been fighting for for so long. And then it happened.

Follow Jessica Sutta on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter!

LGBT advocates and marriage leaders joined the crowd of excited supporters, explaining the significance of the day, and thanking the American people for working tirelessly to make this fight possible.

"This win is a result of the work of a movement," Marc Solomon, national campaign director of Freedom to Marry, said as he addressed the cheering crowd at Stonewall that evening. "Let freedom ring, America! When we started at Stonewall Inn, we were a despised minority. Today, we have the freedom to marry in all 50 states."

See pictures of Freedom to Marry staff and supporters from New York who came out to celebrate this truly historic and transformative day!

Democracy Now!: Marc Solomon

Marc Solomon joined trans activist Jennicet Gutiérrez on Democracy Now!, hosted by Amy Goodman, to speak about what was next for LGBT rights after marriage.

"Our organization, as we have always promised, will shut down in the next few months," Marc said. "But the fight for equality for LGBT people must continue. And there are some crucial items on the agenda that—I believe we can harness all of the momentum and all of the conversations and all of the goodwill that’s come out of this marriage ruling to make steady and actually rapid progress."

Watch the full video below:

This Week: Evan Wolfson

Evan Wolfson joined lead Ohio marriage plaintiff Jim Obergefell on This Week with George Stephonopolous and discussed how far the American public has come in order to make this Supreme Court decision happen.

"We worked very hard to move the American people, and the American people did move," Evan said. "63 per cent now support the freedom to marry, and that's going to go up. Way back, it was 27 per cent, when I started working on this. But the fact of the matter is we have a constitution, and the constitution guarantees the freedom to marry...and we shouldn't have to be working to get a vote, and be up or down on whether any American can share in this constitutional decree. That's why we have a constitution."

Watch the full video here:

ABC US News | World News

Andrea Mitchell: Marc Solomon

Marc Solomon spoke on Andrea Mitchell Reports about the freedom to marry in Texas, where some officials are dragging their feet.

"What's most important is that the vast majority of clerks around the state of Texas, from Austin to Dallas to San Antonio are issuing marriage licenses, so you certainly hear some of the politicians making noise, but things are going very smoothly," Marc said. "The other thing I'd say is that public officials shouldn't deny marriage licenses to members of the public, that's not how we do it in America. The south has experienced issues, 50 years ago, where public officials denied certain people their constitutional freedoms, and not others, and I don't think we want to go back there."

Watch the full video here:

"Love Wins," they say. "Equal Dignity." "All 50 States." "A Right to Marry." "A Forbidden Rite No Longer."

These newspaper covers should make us proud. These headlines have been decades-in-the-making. Congratulations, America.

Complete archive of newspapers available from the Newseum.

Alabama

Alaska

Arizona

Arkansas

California

Colorado

Connecticut

Washington, D.C.

Florida

Georgia

Hawaii

Idaho

Iowa

Illinois

Indiana

Kansas

Kentucky

Louisiana

Maine

Maryland

Massachusetts

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi

Missouri

Montana

Nebraska

Nevada

New Hampshire

New Jersey

New York

New Mexico

North Carolina

North Dakota

Ohio

Oklahoma

Oregon

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

South Carolina

South Dakota

Tennessee

Texas

Utah

Vermont

Virginia

Washington

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming

After the United States Supreme Court's ruling, 13 states' marriage bans were struck down. As counties announced that they were following the law of the land -- and the nation's highest court's hundreds of couples rushed to their local county clerks to, at long last, get married to their true love.

See pictures of couples in states across the country that, for the first time, were respected by America.

Mississippi

Amber Hamilton & Annice Smith, 1st gay couple in Forrest Co. to apply for marriage certificate this morning! #WHLT22 pic.twitter.com/P73XVoYGpk

— WHLT 22 Hattiesburg (@WHLT22) June 26, 2015

Ohio

Erin & Alisha are the first same-sex couples to marry in Montgomery Country! #SCOTUS #LoveWins #Ohio pic.twitter.com/J1CeENP6Ut

— Why Marriage Matters (@MarriageOH) June 26, 2015

Arkansas

First same-sex marriage license just issued in Arkansas post the SCOTUS ruling. pic.twitter.com/dndR0ROy1u

— Elicia Dover (@EliciaDover) June 26, 2015

Georgia

First same-sex marriage in Fulton County #Georgia. #wsbtv pic.twitter.com/Xu1PAavApU

— Brian Ferguson (@BFergusonWSB) June 26, 2015

Kentucky

Here it is!!! first #MarriageEquaility license issued in #Louisville to plaintiffs Tim & Larry #LoveWins pic.twitter.com/7kBdhahg9J

— ACLU of Kentucky (@ACLUofKY) June 26, 2015

Tennessee

Exchanging rings. "I choose you to be my wife." pic.twitter.com/lvt5kzDhFp

— Steven Hale (@iamstevenhale) June 26, 2015

Texas

First couple to get marriage license in Dallas County. They have been together 55 years. @CBSDFW pic.twitter.com/92ri2sTEUc

— Arezow Doost (@CBS11Arezow) June 26, 2015

Nebraska

first same sex couple married in Nebraska ??

"Progress on this journey often comes in small increments," the president said. "Sometimes two steps forward, one step back, compelled by the persistent effort of dedicated citizens. And then sometimes there are days like this, when that slow, steady effort is rewarded with justice that arrives like a thunderbolt."

He continued: "What an extraordinary achievement, but what a vindication of the belief that ordinary people can do extraordinary things; what a reminder of what Bobby Kennedy once said about how small actions can be like pebbles being thrown into a still lake, and ripples of hope cascade outwards and change the world. Those countless, often anonymous heroes, they deserve our thanks. They should be very proud. America should be very proud."

For several years, President Barack Obama and his administration have been increasingly vocal advocates for the freedom to marry, beginning with his announcement in February 2011 that the Obama administration believes that the so-called Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional. In May 2012, he made history by becoming the first sitting president to voice personal support for same-sex couples' freedom to marry. He subsequently weighed in on four key marriage ballot measures in Maine, Maryland, Minnesota and Washington, expressed strong support for similar legislative marriage bills, and memorably, in his inaugural address in January 2013, called for the freedom to marry for all couples, saying, "Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law - for if we are truly created equal, then surely the love we commit to one another must be equal as well."

Freedom to Marry thanks President Obama for years of work moving marriage forward, and for this affecting speech. Watch the full video below:

The 30-second TV spot will air across the nation, and explains how the freedom to marry will impact families across the nation positively. The ad focuses on America's commitment to providing freedom and liberty to all its citizens -- and how this ruling is in line with our constitution.

Earlier today, the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of the freedom to marry nationwide, a decision that will soon bring the freedom to marry to same-sex couples across the country, ending marriage discrimination once and for all. The ruling was in the case Obergefell v. Hodges, and ends marriage bans in the 13 states that still did not have the freedom to marry before today.

Follow live updates on the ruling here.

Watch the full ad below:

Read the full ruling in Obergefell HERE. 

The ruling means that same-sex couples throughout the entire nation will no longer be banned from the rights and responsibilities of marriage guaranteed by the Constitution.

Evan Wolfson, founder and president of Freedom to Marry, celebrated joyously with the thousands of Americans couples who will finally be able to share in the fundamental freedom to marry the person they love. He said:

Today’s ruling is a transformative triumph decades in the making, a momentous victory for freedom, equality, inclusion, and above all, love. For anyone who ever doubted that we could bend the arc of the moral universe toward justice, today the United States again took a giant step toward the more perfect union we the people aspire to. Today the Liberty Bell rings alongside wedding bells across an ocean of joy. 

With the ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, the justices affirmed what a super-majority of Americans had come to understand: the freedom to marry is a precious, fundamental right that belongs to all, and that same-sex couples and our families share the same dreams and needs as any others. 

Freedom to Marry has long worked toward winning marriage nationwide, always with the ultimate goal of winning at the United States Supreme Court. The decision today was issued in cases brought by the American Civil Liberties Union, Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, Lambda Legal, the National Center for Lesbian Rights, as well as local counsel from Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee. Learn about each of the cases here. 

A Decades-in-the-Making Ruling

The ruling today is the result of years and years of hard work by marriage advocates to end marriage discrimination nationwide. The first marriage case, Baker v. Nelson, was brought to the United States Supreme Court in 1973, over 40 years ago, by Richard Baker and James Michael McConnell, who were denied a marriage license by the Hennepin County District Court's clerk on May 18, 1970.

Twenty years later, the first ruling in favor of the freedom to marry came down. In 1993, in the case Baehr v. Lewin, the Hawaii Supreme Court ruled that that denying marriage to same-sex couples violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Hawaii Constitution. 

Evan Wolfson, a key lawyer in the Hawaii marriage case that brought the first court victory for the freedom to marry, explained that this outcome was a result of tireless work changing people's minds as well as winning court battles:

Today’s win is the culmination of a decades-long campaign that successfully made the case in the court of public opinion, enabling victories in the courts of law.

Freedom to Marry calls on state officials to swiftly and faithfully implement the Constitution’s command in the remaining 13 states with marriage discrimination, so that all Americans can marry the person they love and build and protect their families, without delay, throughout the land.

While the work towards equality for all Americans is far from over, the Freedom to Marry campaign has been transformative in Americans’ understanding of who gay people are.

Harnessing the Momentum

As state officials now begin to carry out the Supreme Court's order, we know that there is much to do still in the realm of LGBT rights. However, as Evan Wolfson pointed out, Freedom to Marry's goal was achieved today:

The movement will continue to harness the power of the marriage conversation and win in the work ahead – including passage of a federal civil rights bill, securing state and local protections against discrimination, tending to the needs of our youth and our seniors, and ensuring that the lived experience of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people is fulfilling, good, inclusive, and equal throughout the land. But the work of this Freedom to Marry campaign is now accomplished. Over the next several months, Freedom to Marry will collaborate with key movement colleagues to smartly and strategically wind down its work and document lessons learned, and then close its doors, having achieved its goal of winning marriage nationwide and helping loving and committed couples cross the threshold to marriage and full inclusion in society, with equal justice under law.

Implementing the Ruling

The 13 states where same-sex couples have not, until this point, been able to share in the freedom to marry are Ohio, Michigan, Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, Texas, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Missouri. This ruling changes everything for the families who call these states home: now, the already married couples in these states will have the same legal standing as any other couple, and the couples who are not yet married will soon be able to have legal weddings of their dreams.

As for same-sex couples who live in the 37 states that enacted the freedom to marry before this ruling, their marriages are now valid wherever they travel within the United States, and should receive the rights of being married no matter what state they are in. This ending of patchwork marriage laws, in addition to making families' dreams come true, has lessened an economic burden on our country.

Key Links

• Follow the Freedom to Marry Live Blog to get updates as we hear of more developments across states, messages from our supporters, and some explainers for what this might mean in your state. 
• Read the ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges that resulted in the freedom to marry nationwide.
• Read Lessons Learned from Freedom to Marry and how we got to this historic point with key media clips from across the years.
• Learn about what this ruling means for you with this resource compiled by the American Civil Liberties Union, Freedom to Marry, Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, Lambda Legal, and the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

Across the country, states are preparing for a possible decision -- and you can be prepared, too. In the event that the freedom to marry comes to the nation, see below for information on how to get married, where to go to get married or support same-sex couples as they marry, and updates on news in these states.

If you'd like to celebrate in your community on Decision Day, see a list of events on UniteforMarriage.org.

Alabama

• Marriage FAQ (Prepared in February by Freedom to Marry and Equality Alabama)
• Find an Officiant (Prepared in February by Freedom to Marry and Equality Alabama)

Arkansas

• List of Counties
• Marriage Requirements
• Arkansans for Equality homepage
• Marriage FAQ
• Find an Officiant

Georgia

• Georgia Equality's Day of Decision Page
• Find an Officiant

Nebraska

• ACLU Nebraska Marriage FAQ

North Dakota

• List of Counties
• Marriage Requirements
• Marriage FAQ

South Dakota

• List of Counties
• Marriage Requirements
• Marriage FAQ

Tennessee

• List of Counties
• Marriage Requirements
• Tennessee Equality Project's "Steps to Follow When the Supreme Court Rules on Marriage"
• Tennessee Equality Project's "Marriage SOS"
• Shelby County Day One Celebration

Texas

• Texas for Marriage's Decision Day Resource Center

Kentucky

• List of Counties
• Marriage Requirements
• Marriage FAQ
• Kentucky Fairness Campaign homepage
• Day of Decision Rally

Louisiana

• New Orleans Decision Day Event

Missouri

• Show Me Marriage FAQ
• Find an Officiant

Mississippi

• Campaign for Southern Equality will have all details on Decision Day.

Michigan

• Michigan for Marriage Resource Center

Ohio

• Why Marriage Matters Ohio Resource Center

A ruling is expected within the next week - before the end of June - and the decision could end marriage discrimination nationwide, once and for all.

The Supreme Court has three days currently scheduled where it will issue opinions at 10:00am. Opinions are scheduled to be published on Thursday, June 25; Friday, June 26; and Monday, June 29. On any of these days, the marriage opinion could be issued, but we won't know until it is announced. 

Here's what you can expect when a ruling comes down:

• Follow along with the rest of the Internet on Twitter using the hashtag #SCOTUS and at SCOTUSBlog.com.
• As soon as an opinion is announced - win or lose - we'll be live blogging everything that happens that day, more intensely than ever, at our Freedom to Marry Live Blog.  
• We'll be here to guide you through every detail of the decision, including what it means for you, what it means for other states, and all of the press coverage around the big decision. 
• Follow along with us - and join the conversation - on Freedom to Marry's Facebook page, Twitter feed, and Instagram account. 

We don't know what the outcome of the ruling will be, but the Freedom to Marry team is hopeful. The lawyers in favor of marriage for same-sex couples made strong, compelling legal arguments, and Freedom to Marry and our supporters continues to make the strongest case possible in the court of national public opinion. 

There are three primary possible outcomes when the Justices issue their ruling:

• The Court could rule for the freedom to marry nationwide by declaring that it is unconstitutional to bar same-sex couples from marriage.
• The Court could rule that non-marriage states must respect marriages legally performed elsewhere, but that those states do not need to issue marriage licenses themselves.
• The Court could rule that marriage bans do not violate the Constitution and that non-marriage states do not have to respect the legal marriages of same-sex couples.

We know you're excited and anxious about this decision - and we're ready to be there to help guide you through the big day.

Stay tuned! And why not go ahead and bookmark the Freedom to Marry Live Blog?

Colin Rose & Paulo Francisco • Panorama City, CA

Colin and Paulo were married in California two years ago, but know that it is undeniably wrong that same-sex couples across the nation do not have that freedom. "Love is not defined by rigid barriers or by some narrowed view of what other people perceive love and marriage should be," Colin said. "Love and marriage is not defined by race, culture or even religion but by the language of the heart."

Bradley Kain & Scott Bridgeman • Palm Springs, CA

Scott and Bradley got married in California after 19 years together. The couple now lives in the state, but their families live in Ohio, where they visit often. “When we land at the airport in Kentucky we are magically unmarried again,” Bradley said. “When we cross the river to Cincinatti we are still unmarried. It is important to us to be married, no matter what state we are in.”

Bruce Reid & Bryndon Fisher • Camas, WA

Bruce and Bryndon were married in California in 2008, 26 years after starting their relationship. Today, they have been together for over three decades, and their marriage is respected in their home state -- but not across the nation. “All citizens should have an equal right to this privilege,” Bruce said. “The love two people of the same gender feel toward one another should be granted the same dignity as it is for heterosexual couples.”

Brian Merritt & Luis Sottil • Mission, TX

After 18 years together, Brian and Luis are still waiting to be able to marry in their home state of Texas. “We have been together through the good times and the bad, just like any other couple, but we are not recognized legally as anything other than roommates,” Brian said. “We deserve the same rights and recognition as any other committed couple.”

Cori & Beverly Morgan • Jacksonville, FL

Cori and Beverly were finally married this year in Florida -- 23 years after they began dating. “It is time for the freedom to marry nationally,” Cori said. “There’s no going back -- we must move forward.

Rev. Joseph Ianiro & John Opaluch • Wood-Ridge, NJ

Over three decades after they first met, Joseph and John were finally able to marry in their home state of New Jersey. Still, the couple knows that many families like theirs aren’t as lucky as they are to live in a state where they could wed. “Love isn’t determined by laws,” Joseph said. But, if marriage was the law of the land, thousands of families across the country would, once and for all, have the rights and responsibilities they deserve.

Jean Tomaselli & Ashley Clayborn • Burlington, NJ

Jean and Ashley were lucky enough to be able to marry in their home state of New Jersey last year, seven years after they met -- but they know this isn’t the case for many same-sex couples like them. “We want to support others who wish to do the same,” Jean said. “All committed couples, regardless of their orientation, should have a right to marry in every state!”

Vicki & Wendi Thomason • Montevallo, AL

Vicki and Wendi knew that they wanted to complete their family by getting married in 2013 -- but they had to travel all the way from Alabama to Rhode Island in order to do that. “We hope, soon, couples don’t have to leave their home state to marry,” Vicki said. “We had been together for 15 years when we finally go married.”

Kenneth Larsen & Mark Jackson • Midway, GA

After almost 40 years together, Kenneth and Mark were forced to travel from their home state of Georgia all the way to Washington, DC to make their commitment legal. When they returned home, their state treated them as if their wedding never happened. “Love must win,” Kenneth said. “Let the truth of our families thrive.

Kenneth Olsen & David Losee • Sandy, UT

It took Kenneth and David 24 years together to be able to marry in their home state of Utah, but they’re still not legally married in every state across the nation, despite waiting half a century. “Ruling for the freedom to marry is the right thing to do,” Kenneth said. “It’s so long overdue.”

Jan Polinsky & Nancy Clark • Lisbon, CT

Ten years after they met, in 2009, Jan and Nancy married in their home state of Connecticut. “Gay and lesbian couples deserve the same rights and benefits as straight couples,” Jan said. “Our country was founded on equal rights for all of its citizens.”

Roman Jones & Bernard Jones • Brooklyn, NY

Over a decade after they met, Roman and Bernard celebrated their wedding surrounded by friends and family in New York -- but that’s not possible for so many families in the 13 states where the freedom to marry is not in effect. “We believe in equality,” Roman said. “We shouldn’t be limited to 37 states any longer. This is the year to bring marriage all over the United States.”

Dawn & Debran Harmon-O'Connor • Atlantic Beach, FL

“Brave men and women began this fight decades ago,” said Dawn, referencing the fight for the freedom to marry nationwide. “In so doing, others in the LGBT community and our allies joined in the struggle and work tirelessly to promote equality.” Dawn and her wife Debra were married in Washington, DC in 2013, and their marriage was finally respected in their home state of Florida this year!

Melanie Otte & Patricia Pineda • Carson, CA

Melanie and Patricia met in 1994 and instantly became best friends. After 14 years of friendship, they fell in love, and have been together ever since. “I believe that all people should have the option to marry when they choose and to whomever they choose,” Melanie said. “Everyone deserves the right to marry.”

Wayne Steinman & Sal Iacullo • New York, NY

Wayne and Sal met in 1972, while they were both working as teachers. In 1987, their daughter, Hope, came to them, and two years later, they had the first openly gay male adoption in New York. Their marriage was respected in New York in 2006, but they know it's a tragedy that all families aren't treated with the same respect. "We anxiously await the pending ruling of the SCOTUS on marriage equality," Wayne said. "To us it is just, it is fair, it is constitutional."

Jo Deutsch & Teresa Williams • Cheverly, MD

Jo and Teresa were married two years ago -- after being together for a full three decades. Although they were delighted on their wedding day, the couple knows it's more important than ever to end the patchwork of marriage laws across the country and bring the freedom to marry to the nation as a whole. In fact, Jo has worked for over four years, as Federal Director of Freedom to Marry, to make sure that happens. Read more about them here.

This news could come as early as Monday, June 22, with the announcement expected sometime this month. County clerks in many states have spoken out that they will be prepared to issue marriage licenses to all qualified couples should the court rule for the freedom to marry. Here's a look:

Texas

Last week, on June 11, Dallas County Clerk John Warren announced that he was ready to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples in the event of a favorable ruling from the United States Supreme Court, even going so far as to say that he would "scratch through" changes on marriage license applications forms, such as the labels of "man" and "woman."

Warren said that within an hour and a half of an opinion, his office would likely begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. “When the Supreme Court issues its opinion, I will immediately meet with counsel to make sure we understand the opinion,” he said. “I’ve already sent a briefing over to our commissioner’s court regarding overtime pay for my staff as well as addressed the need to have security not lock the building at its normal 5:00/5:30 scheduled time.”

Earlier this month, Travis County, Texas Clerk Dana DeBeauvoir also stated that she would be ready for a decision in favor of marriage for all couples. DeBeauvoir has been a supporter for the freedom to marry for some time, and said that she was "hoping for crowds" of loving, committed couples ready to get married after the hopefully positive decision.

On Monday, June 22, Texas' Bexar County Clerk Gerry Rickhoff said that he was prepared to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples if the Supreme Court ruled in favor of marriage. "Just get in your car and come down to Bexar," he said. "Because you're going to be embraced here."

Ohio

Ohio's Brown County Judge Danny Bubp said that counties in the state are ready to follow the law if the United States Supreme Court rules in favor of marriage. "Some counties are leaning forward and already looking at how they would change the forms," he said. "They now say 'bride' and 'groom.' If you have two males come in, who goes on which line? It's clear the form would have to be changed."

Melissa Pearse, the supervisor for distributing marriage licenses in Ohio's Hamilton County, agreed that she would treat all couples the same in the event of a favorable ruling. Probate court officials in many Central Ohio counties have also voiced their readiness for the freedom to marry.

Finally, Stephen Hoffman, Kenton County, Ohio's magistrate, has no reservations about marrying a same-sex couple if the freedom to marry becomes the law of the land. "If the law states...marriages [between same-sex couples] are legal, I'm a duly elected official sworn to uphold the law, so they'll get married," he said. 

Tennessee

Preparations are underway in Tennessee, as well. Washington County's County Clerk, Kathy Storey, said that she thinks that Tennessee may start issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples as soon as the day after a favorable decision comes down.

Georgia

In Georgia, multiple officials have spoken out in support of immediately respecting the United States Supreme Court's ruling on marriage. Georgia's Governor Nathan Deal, in April, said that a ruling from the nation's highest court would overrule any bans on the state level. "I think we understand that in our republican form of government, that federal, constitutional issues trump state constitutional issues," he said. "So we will abide by whatever the Supreme Court rules as an interpretation of the United States Constitution.”

Georgia's Attorney General has also voiced his commitment to following a Supreme Court decision. Attorney General Sam Olens also affirmed his duty to follow the law. "When the Supreme Court rules on an issue, we’re going to follow the order…" he said. "We’re going to encourage all those agencies that have a policy role that they immediately follow the law... When the U.S. Supreme Court rules, it’s not time for criticism. It’s not time for banter. It’s time for the lawyer to play lawyer, and to ensure that everyone follows that law.”

Earlier this month, Georgia's Fulton County's Board of Commissioners voted unanimously to urge the county clerks in the county to be ready for same-sex couples if the ruling comes down in favor of ending the marriage ban. And, across the state, Georgia's Council of Probate Judges said marriage licenses will be issued to same-sex couples. “We have made our judges aware of consequences if they do not adhere to a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court,” Cook County Probate Judge Chase Daughtrey said. "Short story, we're ready."

Michigan

And in Michigan, the Calhoun County Clerk's office is ready for a large number of same-sex couples to apply for marriage licenses in the event that the United States Supreme Court lifts the state's marriage ban. "We feel as though we will be somewhat inundated the first day after the ruling,” Calhoun County Clerk, Anne Norlander, said. "...We will put a new form out on the Internet. It's a worksheet."

Freedom to Marry congratulates these counties on their preparedness and eagerness to follow the law should the United States Supreme Court bring the question of marriage between same-sex couples to a national resolution, and urges all counties, in every state where the rights and responsibilities are denied to families, to follow their lead.

Limited Partnership tracks the 40-year journey of Tony Sullivan and Richard Adams, the first same-sex couple to file a federal lawsuit seeking the freedom to marry, back in the late 1970s. Tony and Richard were one of just a few couples issued marriage licenses in Boulder, Colorado by Clela Rorex, the local county clerk who decided there was no legal obstacle to her issuing licenses to all couples. Richard and Tony, an Australian citizen who met Richard while in the United States, filed the lawsuit seeking legal recognition of their marriage for the purpose of allowing Richard to sponsor Tony's green card to stay in the U.S. They lost several legal challenges, but their story stands as a powerful reminder of the long, long road to where we stand now in the campaign to win marriage for same-sex couples nationwide.

Last week, Tony Sullivan, Clela Rorex, director Thomas G. Miller, and Freedom to Marry founder and president Evan Wolfson, sat on a panel following an exclusive preview screening of the film, organized by Rocky Mountain PBS, Independent Lens, WNET, and NET. The panelists discussed the film, dove more deeply into Tony and Richard's love story, and explored how far we've come on the freedom to marry - and what's next. Watch the full hour-long panel below. 

Thomas G. Miller worked on the documentary for 14 years, providing an incredibly in-depth look into Tony and Richard's life together. He and co-producer Kirk Marcolina paint a beautiful, moving portrait of the couple's life together, tracking their 40 years of love and commitment through every twist and turn in their legal process seeking the freedom to marry and legal immigration status for Tony. 

Tony Sullivan commented on the uniqueness of this panel event last week. He said, "I just got very emotional at this screening, and I don't get very emotional about this. This is probably one of the last times I'll be watching this with an audience - and this has something to do with you, Evan. And really, I came apart in this screening, and I realized why: For the first time, someone who really knew and understood what the issue was about was sitting next to me, and so for the first time at a screening I had someone who I knew knew what we were going through."

Evan Wolfson explained the power of Limited Partnership during the panel:

"One of the chief engines of change has been people telling their stories - people being willing to share, let other people into their lives, risk disappointment and rejection in order to help other people rise. And Tom's film is such an extraordinarily effective example of that. It centers on the decency and strength and purity of commitment that Clela showed, and above all, the love story that Tony and Richard had, which was not an artificial story, and everybody can see it meticulously, beautifully, richly portrayed year after year after year thanks to Tony letting Tom into their lives at such painful moments. Throughout the storytelling, not only do we see their love, but we also see Tony's unfailing optimism: Tony's unfailing confidence that people can do better. That is what we a have all as a movement needed to bring to this - that we could believe that we could see a change, that other people could do better. Tony expressed that year after year, encounter after encounter, despite everything they were going through. That's why I think this film will so powerfully resonate, because it connects the love and the personal with what we need as people seeking a change." 

Freedom to Marry served as a Community Partner for several Limited Partnership screenings this spring, joined by First Person, GLAAD, Out4Immigration, Immigration Equality, and Asian Pride Project.

Don't miss the PBS debut of Limited Partnership tonight on PBS, June 15, at 10:00pm ET, and watch the panel discussion here:

The case, on which the Supreme Court ruled in 1967, has been a touchtone for supporters of the freedom to marry for same-sex couples. Last year, the freedom to marry for same-sex couples came to more states than the freedom to marry for interracial couples before the Loving v. Virginia decision -- indicating that Americans know, now more than ever, that all loving, committed couples should be able to have the rights and responsibilities of marriage.

The plaintiffs in Loving v. Virginia were a black woman, Mildred Loving, and a white man, Richard Loving, who wanted to be married in their home state of Virginia. But laws in that state prohibited interracial marriage -- until the United States Supreme Court found that practice unequivocally unconstitutional.

In more than 14 cases throughout history, including Loving v. Virginia, the United States Supreme Court has declared marriage a fundamental right. In the Loving decision, the Court wrote, "The freedom to marry has long been recognized as one of the vital personal rights essential to the orderly pursuit of happiness by free men." Read more about the other 13 cases here.

As we await the Supreme Court's decision on the freedom to marry for same-sex couples, we urge them to remember this case from 48 years ago, that cemented the truth that love is love, and that marriage should be denied to no one.

Wendy & Vicki Thompson • Loveland, CO

Throughout their relationship, Vicki and Wendy have watched two beautiful children grow into strong adults, and welcomed their second grandchild just last year. The couple were married in 2008 in California, and then returned to their home state of Colorado to work towards the freedom to marry at home. "It is time that all Americans have the rights and responsibilities that come with marriage," Wendy said. "Everyone should be free to marry the person they love no matter what state they live in. When SCOTUS makes their decision, we will celebrate with our kids who have been so supportive of us and their own friends in the LGBT community."

Greg Bourke & Michael DeLeon • Louisville, KY

After 22 years together, Greg and Michael were finally married in Canada -- but when they returned to Kentucky, their marriage was no longer respected. In 2013, when the core of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act was struck down by the United States Supreme Court, the couple filed a lawsuit seeking respect for their marriage -- something that seemed more and more important as their children grew up. Now, their case is before the Supreme Court -- and could change the history of the freedom to marry nationwide. Read more about their story here.

Miriam & Susanne Thompson • Hedgesville, WV

In 2011, Miriam and Susanne Thompson were married in Connecticut -- but when they traveled back to West Virginia, their home state, their relationship was no longer respected. That all changed last year, when the Supreme Court denied review of marriage cases, bringing marriage to West Virginia. “My license is now changed, and we could file taxes this year for the first time!” Miriam said. But the couple knows that many families across the country are still waiting for a national ruling -- and the time is now.

Latasha & Chasity Parker • Rolla, MO

“Everyone deserves to be married and have a family,” Latasha said. “If you want to marry that person and be with them forever, you should be allowed to!” The couple was married this year, after 6 years of being together, and hope that their marriage will soon be respected no matter where they go.

Brett Fowler & Brian Lemus • New Orleans, LA

Brett and Brian have been together for 35 years, but still cannot get married in their home state of Louisiana. “We’ve long been treated as second class citizens,” Brett said. “Now is the time for equality for everyone.”

Dwane Thackston & William Alexander • Decatur, GA

Dwane and William traveled to South Carolina to get married this year on their 38th anniversary -- but are still legal strangers in their home state of Georgia. “We’ve been together for 38 years,” Dwane said. “We need Georgia to recognize our marriage.

Susan McGee & Karen L March • Eureka, CA

Susan and Karen married in their home state of California in 2008, 15 years after they met. They are grateful they were able to celebrate their commitment together -- and remain respected -- in California, but understand that couples all across the nation deserve the same rights. “Our love must triumph,” Susan said. “Our love must be recognized.”

Chad & Patrick Scanlon • Celebration, FL

When Chad and Patrick came back to their home state of Florida in 2011 after their wedding in Connecticut, their marriage was no longer respected. But that all changed this year, when the freedom to marry came to the Sunshine State. Still, if the couple were to travel to any other state that does not respect marriages between same-sex couples, they would suddenly be legal strangers. “Why should we be denied the recognition of our relationship just because we are two men?” Chad asked.

Adrienne & Kea Johnson • Brooklyn, NY

Adrienne and Kea were together for almost 10 years before they were finally able to get married in 2011 in their home state of New York. Still, they understand the need for every family, everywhere, to have the same rights and responsibilities they do.”Our human rights should not have to wait,” Adrienne said. “Love matters.”

Edward Thomas-Herrera & David Kodeski • Chicago, IL

In 2014, David and Edward were finally legally able to get married in their home state of Illinois -- after being together for 22 years. “It wasn’t about cake,” Edward laughed. “It was about making sure I can legally take care of the most important person in my life.”

Shaun Olson & Scott Marble • Brooklyn Park, MN

“We would be in a completely different situation if we were not allowed to get married,” Shaun said, referencing his husband Scott’s ALS diagnosis. “Medical decisions would be out of my hands. It is important that people are protected from losing everything after you have already lost so much.” The couple was married in Minnesota in 2013, after being together for 15 years before that.

Kenny Litvack & Kevin Dziuba • Mount Laurel, NJ

After 10 years of being in love, Kenny and Kevin finally married in New Jersey, where their relationship is respected. But the couple isn’t done fighting for love until everyone in the country has the same rights. “Love must win because we cannot call ourselves a great nation while simultaneously maintaining a second-class citizenry,” Kenny said. “Love is love!”

Ken Sundvik & Clint Hoiland • Clarkston, WA

“Families like ours deserve the same rights as everyone else,” Ken said, referencing his marriage to his partner of 19 years, Clint. “Our children deserve the same protections afforded to all families.” The couple was married in 2012, with a ceremony in 2013, alongside their two sons.

Robert & Tony Christon-Walker • Birmingham, AL

Although Tony and Robert were legally married in Washington D.C. last year, they had made a commitment to each other at a commitment ceremony in their home state of Alabama five years previously -- and never looked back. “All families deserve to be treated equally and have the same rights,” Robert said.

Stephanie Archie & Lisa White • Silver Spring, MD

Stephanie and Lisa have been together for 19 years -- but they still can’t be legally married anywhere in the country. “Everyone having the freedom to marry is just right,” Stephanie said. “Plain and simple!”

David Adcock & Ray Bomer • Fort Worth, TX

David and Ray were married last year in Oklahoma, after almost 30 years together. But when they returned to their home town in Texas, they were legally no longer married -- despite their lasting devotion and commitment. “It’s time for equal protection and rights,” David said.

Keli & DeAnna Criner • Springfield, OH

“I can only hope and pray that it is the beginning of the end of discrimination of marriage in the U.S. as the Supreme Court takes marriage into their hands now,” Keli said. “I’ve committed my life to the woman I’ve loved for over 10 years now, my wife and love of my life -- but this is not recognized in Ohio. I pray this is soon a thing of the past that our children and future generations do not have to go through.” Keli and DeAnna were married last year in Illinois, but when they returned home, their marriage was no longer respected.

The case in which Judge Griffen granted respect for these marriages was filed by private attorneys in Arkansas state on behalf of two same-sex couples who married in Arkansas on May 9, directly after a pro-marriage ruling. The plaintiffs, Angelia Frazier-Henson and Katherine Henson, and Markett Humphries and Dianna Cristy, were married on the first day of the freedom to marry in Arkansas in Pulaski County.

Evan Wolfson, president and founder of Freedom to Marry, applauded this ruling:

Today Judge Griffen joins more than 65 federal and state courts across America that have found that denying same-sex couples the freedom to marry or equal respect for their marriages violates the U.S. Constitution. But too many other couples are still being denied the freedom to marry and full respect and equality under the law, in Arkansas and other states. It’s time for the Supreme Court to do what courts and the super-majority of Americans have done: affirm the freedom to marry for all, bringing an end to marriage discrimination throughout the land, leaving no family and no state out.

Same-sex couples were able to marry between May 9 to May 16 of 2014, after Judge Chris Piazza of Arkansas upheld same-sex couples' freedom to marry by striking down the state’s discriminatory constitutional amendment in this case filed in state court on behalf of more than 20 same-sex couples - some married, some unmarried - and one woman seeking recognition for her marriage for the purpose of divorce. 

The judge did not issue a stay in the ruling - and for the next week, same-sex couples could marry in the state until the Arkansas Supreme Court issued a stay in the decision. On the event of the stay, respect for the hundreds of same-sex couples' marriages was revoked in this state, meaning that their marriages were no longer recognized in the state where they were performed. As of this ruling, however, these couples will be entitled to the rights and responsibilities of marriage within the state.

Freedom to Marry congratulates the same-sex couples who married during this time on their marriages getting the respect they deserve, and urges the United States Supreme Court to ensure that all loving, committed couples are also afforded this right.

Read the full ruling here.

On June 5, Friday of last week, U.S. District Judge Frances M. Tydingco-Gatewood ruled in favor of the freedom to marry in Guam, citing the 9th Circuit's previous decision on the question of marriage between same-sex couples. Judge Tydingco-Gatewood ruled from the bench following a hearing in the case Aguero et. al. v Calvo et. al. The case was brought by Loretta M. Pangelinan and Kathleen M. Aguero in April after they tried to get a marriage license and were denied.

The ruling went into effect today, at 8 a.m. local time. Loretta and Kathleen were present, applying for a marriage license. Another couple, Deasia Johnson and Nikki Dismuke-Johnson, became the first same-sex couple who were issued a marriage license.

See more pictures from the first day of marriage here.

Newlyweds Deasia Johnson and Nikki Dismuke-Johnson with 1st marriage certificate issued to a same-sex couple in Guam pic.twitter.com/sDcCvxnbta

— Cameron Miculka (@CIMiculka) June 8, 2015

Aguero, Pangelinan pose with the first marriage license issued to a same-sex couple in Guam. pic.twitter.com/4bHCuqx0JY

— Cameron Miculka (@CIMiculka) June 8, 2015

Nikki Dismuke and Deasia Johnson are getting married right now at #Guam Public Health. pic.twitter.com/GWILyDX8l7

— Guam PDN (@GuamPDN) June 8, 2015

Aguero, Pangelinan shows off first marriage license issued to a gay couple on Guam. http://t.co/NMHAMAQEXl pic.twitter.com/BbxugQlvOh

— Guam PDN (@GuamPDN) June 8, 2015

George W. Bush-appointed U.S. District Court Judge Frances M. Tydingco-Gatewood ruled from the bench last night, after hearing oral arguments in a case. The case, Aguero et. al. v Calvo et. al., was brought by Loretta M. Pangelinan and Kathleen M. Aguero in April after they tried to get a marriage license and were denied.

The ruling is stayed until Tuesday, June 9, 8 am local time, which is when Judge Tydingco-Gatewood will also release her written opinion. The judge ruled in line with the 9th Circuit's previous decision in favor of the freedom to marry in Latta v. Otter, which ended the marriage ban in Idaho, and Sevcik v. Sandoval, which ended the marriage ban in Nevada:

Guam's marriage laws are unconstitutional because they violate the plaintiffs' rights under the 14th amendment of the United States Constitution. Accordingly, the court shall permanently enjoin the territory of Guam and its officers...from enforcing...any laws or regulations to the extent they prohibit otherwise qualified same-sex couples from marrying in Guam.

Evan Wolfson, founder and president of Freedom to Marry, emphasized the momentum for marriage ahead of a decision from the United States Supreme Court on the question of the freedom to marry:

Guam’s same-sex couples and their loved ones want and deserve the freedom to marry and all that marriage can bring -- protections, security, and respect. We can now add Guam’s voice to the momentum across America, and hope the Supreme Court will this month ensure that no other families, and no state, are left behind.

Last May, attorneys for the government of Guam wrote that they would respect a ruling to strike down the territory's marriage ban.

Freedom to Marry congratulates Kathleen and Loretta, as well as other same-sex couples who are finally respected in Guam, on this decision, and applauds Judge Tydingco-Gatwood for ruling on the right side of history.

Watch Judge Tydingco-Gatewood's ruling below: