On june 24 of this year, Roe v. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court of the United States, meaning the right to privacy when it comes to an abortion is now up to the states. Although this landmark case has been the only one overturned in this term so far, Justice Clarence Thomas made a statement implying the Court should next review several other landmark cases. 

Justice Thomas suggested in the majority opinion of the Court that they should reconsider the decisions made in Griswold v. Connecticut, Lawrence v. Texas and Obergefell v. Hodge. These rulings currently protect the right to buy and use contraceptives without government restriction, the right to a same-sex relationship and the right to same-sex marriage, respectively

Obergefell v. Hodge was just one of the cases recommended for review by Justice Thomas but was found most striking by United States citizens. The mention of this case after the overturning of an already important landmark case would be completely life-changing for so many. 

Facing the potential impending threat to same-sex marriage, Democrats and some Republicans are now working on a new bill called the Respect for Marriage Act regarding same-sex marriage rights. This bill is incredibly important when it comes to marriage equality because it would codify same-sex marriage into law and ensure the 2015 ruling of Obergefell v. Hodge remains intact. 

The most important aspect about this bill would be the recognition of same-sex marriage on the federal level even with the potential overturning of Obergefell v. Hodges. Federal recognition of same-sex marriage rights is not only important, but it is crucial in making sure an entire group of Americans won’t be discriminated against for their choice to get married. 

Something many people pointed out when analyzing the cases suggested by Justice Thomas was that he left out Loving v. Virginia, the case overturning the ban on interracial marriage. While there was a great deal of speculation about why this would be left off, many people came to the same conclusion: Justice Thomas is picking and choosing what is most convenient for his personal life. 

Loving v. Virginia certainly counts as a landmark case on the same level as Obergefell v. Hodge, but Justice Thomas left it out of the list of decisions he believes should be reviewed. He conveniently failed to mention it because he reaps the benefits from it as a Black man married to a white woman.

Especially with a more right-leaning Supreme Court, it will now be much harder to ensure the protection of equal rights on a federal level. Although this shouldn’t be the case because of the Separation of Church and State, as well as freedom of religion laid out in the Constitution, it still is. 

This is especially ironic because the Supreme Court cited the Constitution as the reasoning for overturning Roe v. Wade, but they conveniently leave it out when it doesn’t benefit them. According to a Gallup poll, 70% of Americans are in support of gay marriage, so the Court isn’t even representing the majority of us. 

The Supreme Court has a duty to represent the majority of American interests, but it is becoming increasingly more obvious they are attempting to follow their own self interest and personal beliefs. 

Nine people overturning such precedence in America is very alarming considering they are allowed to do it with no repercussions. Same-sex marriage is not a political issue; it is a human rights issue, and keeping it from people denies them the right that other people have. By denying the rights of one group, the gap of inequality will widen and generate greater divides in our country. 

At The News, we believe that Americans should have much more say in the decisions made for us. Rather than sitting back and being forced to watch decisions made that go against what we believe, we should not feel powerless. 

As Americans, we have to consider everyone affected by this bill and what the overturning of Obergefell v. Hodge would mean for our country and its people. We need to rally behind the Democrats and Republicans attempting to pass the bill in order to get it passed. 

We can reach out to state senators such as Mitch McConnel and Rand Paul in KY, Todd Young and Mike Braun in Indiana, Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth in Illinois, and Marsha Blackburn and Lamar alexander in Tennessee. Communication can be the first step in encouraging senators in our home states to offer support for the bill. 

No one in America deserves to have their rights infringed upon by a body of nine people, and supporting this bill would benefit everyone. We have to put ourselves in the shoes of someone seeking same-sex marriage and understand how it would feel to be told it was illegal to get married.