Whether you’re conservative or liberal, you have to agree the country is warming up to the idea of marriage equality. In its latest poll, the Pew Research Center reported that 51 percent of Americans support marriage equality, and with the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act, pressure is being shifted back to states to legalize marriage equality.
This week, six same-sex couples are putting pressure on the state to make changes to Florida’s constitution to allow it in the Sunshine State. We reported Wednesday that the couples filed suits in the Miami-Dade Circuit Court against the state’s anti-same-sex marriage law.
Many conservative critics in the state have voiced their disdain for the couples’ actions. According to the Sun Sentinel, “Jannique Stewart, of Coconut Creek, is executive director of Love Protects, a Christian ministry that believes in a biblical approach to sexuality, and was South Florida spokeswoman for the 2008 amendment.”
“‘They can file the lawsuit all they want,’ she said. ‘In 2008, we the people voted for marriage as one man and one woman. So they’re trying to thwart the will of the people.’”
Stewart’s statement and the arguments of other vocal anti-marriage equality supporters in the state couldn’t be more off base.
The political climate in the state has shifted in the past six years, reflecting a growing support base for same-sex couples who want their marriages to be recognized on Florida soil — or sand.
Gov. Rick Scott, who told the Orlando Sentinel last year that he believes in “traditional marriage,” has a slipping approval rating: only 46 percent, according to Politico.
Marriage equality continues to be a hot-button issue, which is simply laughable. The argument is a no-brainer: Everyone, no matter his or her sexual orientation, deserves to marry in his or her home state. It’s unfair to ask longtime Florida residents to flock to other states in search of legal matrimony.
Jeff Delmay, one of the men who filed suit in Miami-Dade this week, told the Sentinel, “Our family is here. Our friends are here. Our life is here. This is where we want to get married … And we look forward to having the right and the freedom to marry in the state which we love. And that day will come very soon.”
Six years ago, the majority of Florida was, indeed, against marriage equality: 62 percent of voters favored the addition of the ban on same-sex marriage to the state constitution. However, this number neither reflects the current state of the country’s view on marriage equality, nor does it reflect the state’s view. As the six couples and their litigation teams move forward in their lawsuit, the editorial board of the Alligator wishes them the best of luck and offers its full support.
[A version of this editorial ran on page 6 on 1/23/2014 under the headline "Couples speak: Florida needs marriage equality"]
