The American Civil Liberties Union is currently filing a lawsuit against Pennsylvania's same-sex marriage ban - Pennsylvania's own DOMA (Pennsylvania's Defense of Marriage Act) - in an effort to prevent state officials from mounting further challenges for same-sex couples, the Huffington Post reports.
Twenty-three plaintiffs will be part of the lawsuit, including 10 gay couples, two children of another and a window who was in a same-sex relationship with her partner for over 29 years.
"I wanted our relationship to be respected like everybody else's relationship," Susan Whitewood, one of the plaintiffs, told the Associated Press. "That was first and foremost the reason for doing this." Whitewood explained that her primary reason for joining the lawsuit was not for "legal validation." Her 16-year old daughter Abby, also a plaintiff along with Whitewood's partner Deb, is excited to fight for her mother's rights and the values of her family.
"My moms love each other. I want to prove that young people like myself can change the world if they stand up for what they believe in," Abby told the AP.
Pennsylvania's Defense of Marriage Act defines marriage as between a man and a woman, and prohibits the state from recognizing same-sex marriages in other parts of the country.
The plaintiffs "include an emergency room doctor, a nurse, a teacher, university professors, a truck driver, an executive at BNY Mellon, a psychologist, retirees, lawyers, a dog trainer, state employees, an artist, and a stay-at-home mom. Several are veterans. The plaintiffs reflect Pennsylvania's rich diversity: they are African-American, Caucasian, Latino, and Asian; they are Methodist, Baptist, Catholic, Quaker, Jewish, Buddhist, and secular," U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright, a Democrat who represents part of Northampton County, wrote in an email this morning.
"Many have been together for decades, and some are raising children together," he wrote. "The situations faced by these couples are similar to those faced by the thousands of same-sex couples in Pennsylvania who are being denied the basic rights that are afforded by marriage. I stand with these 23 Pennsylvanians."
ACLU says in their lawsuit that a ban on same-sex marriage is not beneficial to government or child welfare concerns of the state, as Pennsylvania judges routinely grant adoption rights to same-sex couples, Lehigh Valley Live reports.
"It serves only to disparage and injure lesbian and gay couples and their families," states the lawsuit.
"What we're looking for is for the court to say: Here we are in the 21st century, and you cannot prohibit somebody from participating in this wonderful institution we call marriage," Witold "Vic" Walczak, legal director of the Pennsylvania ACLU, said to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
At this point in time, the Supreme Court's recent decision to overturn DOMA means little to gay couples in the state of Pennsylvania, as it did not specify whether or not a ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional, nor knock down any laws in majority states that are anti-gay marriage.
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