(No straight marriages have been harmed in the making of
this blog post.)
As your TEP Public Policy Chair, I want to send a huge hug
of congratulations to all of the couples here in Tennessee and around the
country that have had legal marriage ceremonies performed in states that
recognize marriage equality. These
couples are now recognized as “spouses” for purposes of federal law. All 1138 rights that were denied to them
under the Defense of Marriage Act of 1996 are now available to them, just as
they are to straight married spouses. It
is a victory for LGBT Americans and a victory for LGBT Tennesseans…at least
some of them.
I’d like to tell you that this means marriage equality for
all LGBT Tennesseans, but I can’t do that.
The Supreme Court did not decide that states couldn’t deny marriage to
same sex couples. The decision says that
the federal government has to recognize marriages that are legally valid in the
eyes of the state that issued the marriage certificate. Tennessee does not
issue valid marriage licenses to same sex couples. We have what is called a “miniDOMA”, an
amendment to our state constitution, which states:
“The historical institution and legal contract solemnizing
the relationship of one man and one woman shall be the only legally recognized
marital contract in this state. Any policy or law or judicial interpretation,
purporting to define marriage as anything other than the historical institution
and legal contract between one man and one woman is contrary to the public
policy of this state and shall be void and unenforceable in Tennessee. If
another state or foreign jurisdiction issues a license for persons to marry and
if such marriage is prohibited in this state by the provisions of this section,
then the marriage shall be void and unenforceable in this state.”
In US v. Windsor, the Court looked at DOMA and noted that a decision about
marriage was a state issue all the way back to the founding of the
country. It was DOMA that turned this
idea on its head. As the Court put it on
page 3 of the decision:
“The State’s decision to give this class of persons the
right to marry conferred upon them a dignity and status of immense import. But
the Federal Government uses the state-defined class for the opposite purpose—to
impose restrictions and disabilities.”
And
“Its unusual deviation from the tradition of recognizing and
accepting state definitions of marriage operates to deprive same-sex couples of
the benefits and responsibilities that come with federal recognition of their
marriages. This is strong evidence of a law having the purpose and effect of
disapproval of a class recognized and protected by state law”
To sum it up, if a state believes you have the right to marry and issues you a
valid marriage certificate, it is not the place of the federal government to
deny you the status of marriage and deny you the benefits of marriage under
federal law.
So what does this mean for those LGBT Tennesseans who are legally
married in other states but live here?
Well, Tennessee does not have a state income tax, so that is not an
issue for us. For your federal income
tax, you may now file “Married, Filing Jointly”. Next April, we will see the largest number of
US citizens that will be ecstatic to file income taxes in the history of tax
filing. Besides income taxes though,
what else will this affect?
Social Security, Disability, Medicare, Medicaid, Family
Medical Leave, and a host of other federal benefits and privileges associated
with marriage will be available to all spouses.
That will not depend on whether or not you and your spouse live in a
state with marriage equality. That is
federal, and follows you and your spouse regardless of domicile. If you or your spouse is a veteran, you will
be treated just like any other married military family for federal
benefits. By the way, while hopefully
you will never have to use it, you are also now entitled to spousal privilege
in federal court, and cannot be compelled to testify against your spouse.
So how do we bring marriage equality to Tennessee? That is a great question. Unfortunately, the answer is not an easy one. The earliest we could get the Tennessee
miniDOMA repealed would likely be 2018, given the long process we have in this
state to get an amendment passed or repealed.
That will take a great deal of time and effort, and the chances of
success, while growing every year as more people show support in this state for
LGBT equality, are still about 50-50.
This is not the only battle we are fighting in Tennessee,
though. This state is a battleground for
many issues affecting LGBT Tennesseans that are unrelated to marriage equality. It is still legal to be fired from your job
on the basis of sexual orientation in this state unless your employer has a
policy forbidding discrimination on that basis.
It is still legal to be denied housing unless the property falls under
the jurisdiction of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), a
federal agency. Bullying is still a HUGE
problem in our schools, as is harassment in our workplaces. In some parts of Tennessee, local law
enforcement and the local judicial system still have an antagonistic
relationship with the LGBT citizens in their jurisdiction, making it harder to
get crimes against our community investigated, solved, and reported.
These are the battles we fight every single day here in
Tennessee. But the work is worth it. Every member of the LGBT community deserves
the same rights and privileges as their straight counterparts in the
state. That is what the Tennessee
Equality Project is fighting for, and we could use your help. As wonderful as it is that the federal government
now recognizes all legal marriages, the daily life of most LGBT Tennesseans is
still a battle against prejudice and discrimination.
Today was a good day.
It really was a good day. Enjoy
it. Celebrate it. Tomorrow your Tennessee Equality Project
folks will be back at work protecting your rights at the state and local level,
albeit with smiles on their faces and a spring in their step that will last quite
a while.
*If I could just add a personal note, I am a bisexual woman married to a wonderful man who supports the work I do for equality without
reservation. I called my husband as I
began writing this post and said, “So, are we still married?” He snarkily replied, “Oh so THAT’S what’s
wrong, I KNEW something was different!”
DOMA never defended our marriage; DOMA attacked the
marriages of our LGBT friends. DOMA
never defended anyone’s marriage, it just denied the benefits and privileges of
marriage to LBGT Americans. If DOMA
defended marriage, then someone please explain to me why the divorce rate has
not fallen since the act was passed in 1996?
And again, No straight marriages have been harmed in the making of this
blog post.
