Plaintiffs, residents
celebrate victory
By LARA MOEHLMAN
Summer Managing News Editor
As news that the Supreme
Court ruled in favor of same-
sex marriage swept across the
U.S. Friday morning, supporters
rallied in both downtown Ann
Arbor and Washington D.C. in
celebration of this historic deci-
sion.
The
Jim
Toy
Community
Center, an advocacy group for
gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgen-
der and queer residents of Ann
Arbor, Ypsilanti and the greater
Washtenaw County area, hosted
a “Day of Decision Rally” so sup-
porters could gather in response
to the Court’s decision.
After
quieting
the
crowd,
April DeBoer and Jayne Rowse,
one couple represented in the
string of cases considered by the
Court, offered remarks under
rainbow colored streamers dur-
ing the press conference portion
of the event. DeBoer thanked her
lawyers for their determination
and hard work.
In January 2012, Michigan
residents
April
DeBoer
and
Jayne Rowse filed a lawsuit in
the U.S. District Court, chal-
lenging Michigan’s ban on adop-
tion by same-sex couples.
DeBoer
and
Rowse
sepa-
rately adopted one son and two
daughters, respectively, but were
unable to jointly adopt their
children because Michigan law
did not recognize same-sex mar-
riages, and only granted joint
parent adoption rights to mar-
ried couples.
“It’s been a long, long, hard
road,” Deboer said. “It’s been
four and a half years in the mak-
ing… We would not be here if it
weren’t for many people, and
first and foremost our attorneys:
Dana Nessel and Ken Mogill, Bob
Sedler and Carole Stanyar. So I
want to thank you guys as well.
My last comment is to my beau-
Supreme Court’s 5-4
decision champions
equality
By ALYSSA BRANDON AND
LARA MOEHLMAN
Summer Managing News Editors
The Supreme Court of the
United States ruled in a 5-to-4
decision that same-sex couples
have a constitutional right to
marriage.
Justice
Anthony
Kennedy
delivered the long-awaited deci-
sion Friday morning.
“The Constitution promises
liberty to all within its reach, a
liberty that includes certain spe-
cific rights that allow persons,
within a lawful realm, to define
and express their identity. The
petitioners in these cases seek
to find that liberty by marry-
ing someone of the same sex and
having their marriages deemed
lawful on the same terms and
conditions as marriages between
persons of the opposite sex,” Ken-
nedy wrote in the decision.
In his remarks at the White
House following the decision’s
release, President Barack Obama
said the Supreme Court’s ruling
was not only a victory for the cou-
ples represented in the cases, but
a victory for the U.S. as a whole.
“And this ruling is a victory for
America,” he said. “This decision
affirms what millions of Ameri-
cans already believe in their
hearts. When all Americans are
treated as equal, we are all more
free.”
He also said the decision
should encourage those who are
still fighting for social change
that change is possible.
“But today should also give
us hope that on the many issues
with which we grapple, often
painfully, real change is possi-
ble.” he said. “Shift in hearts and
minds is possible. And those who
have come so far on their journey
to equality have a responsibility
to reach back and help others
join them, because for all of our
differences, we are one people,
stronger together than we could
ever be alone. That’s always been
our story.”
Weekly Summer Edition
MichiganDaily.com
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See MARRIAGE, Page 3
See COMMUNITY, Page 8
Community reacts to Supreme Court ruling
SAME-SEX MARRIAGE LEGALIZED
ANN ARBOR
CELEBRATING OUR ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY- FIFTH YEAR OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM
Thursday, July 2, 2015
Ann Arbor, MI
INDEX
Vol. CXXI, No. 137 | © 2015 The Michigan Daily
michigandaily.com
NEWS ....................................
OPINION ...............................
ARTS ......................................
CLASSIFIEDS.........................
SUDOKU.................................
SPORTS..................................
OPINION
IT’S ABOUT TIME
Overdue ruling sets historical
precedent.
>> SEE PAGE 4
ZACH MOORE/Daily
Ann Arbor residents celebrate the Supreme Court’s decision to legalize same-sex marriage.