Steve Young's family up against Mormon church on Prop. 8

[Sheriff Gonna Getcha]

Originally Posted by saden1

Why not?

Generally speaking, the Equal Protection clause has been used to strike down laws that discriminate on the basis of gender, race, national origin and religion. Laws prohibiting gay marriage probably do not discriminate on the basis of any of those categories.

I say "probably" because some lawyers believe they discriminate on the basis of gender. They argue that laws prohibiting gay marriage deny couples marriage licenses on the basis of their "collective gender" (i.e., he's a man and his partner is a man, therefore they cannot marry) and therefore run afoul of the Equal Protection clause.

Most lawyers, however, do not look agree. Rather, they say the Equal Protection clause applies to individuals and no person is denied a marriage license on the basis of his or her gender. They also advance the somewhat circular argument that the right to marry means the right to have a relationship between two members of the opposite sex recognized by the state. So, laws prohibiting gay "marriage" do not deny homosexuals any recognized/traditional right.