Indiana, Oklahoma, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin, received a rude awakening when the Supreme Court temporarily blocked their appeals attempting to ban same-sex marriage, paving the way for gays to marry in 30 states as of October 6.Associated Press said that appeals were made by these few states because of their belief that such unions are unconstitutional. Only four out of the nine justices of the Supreme Court need to vote to hear a case and only five justices are needed to make an actual ruling. In the case of these gay marriage appeals, the justices stopped just short of resolving the issue finally nationwide, reported AP. Instead they have pushed their ultimate decision to a later date. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints stands firm against gay marriage stating in a press release, “The succession of federal court decisions in recent months, culminating in today’s announcement by the Supreme Court, will have no effect on the doctrinal position or practices of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which is that only marriage between a man and a woman is acceptable to God.” Although, church news added that church leaders will continue to encourage their people to avoid persecution of those with different sexual orientations and exert good will to everyone. “Marriage should be between and a woman but that shouldn’t stop someone from loving and living how they please,” Jaden Leafa, a senior from Utah majoring in social work, said. The LDS church encourages all to treat those with homosexual attraction with love and kindness, as they would anyone else. Many members are able to balance kindness while appealing the right to have same-sex marriages because of their belief it will lead to a decline in social values.Irene Yu, a sophomore majoring in business, stated, “If the law allows gay marriage to continue it becomes a way to destroy families.” Layla Orton sees both sides of the same-sex marriage appeals. The undeclared freshman from Laie said, “Things like this are fifty-fifty. There’s always going to be two sides to it. You have the people that want to be with whomever they please to be with and then the people that believe what is right and what is absolutely wrong.”Brian Brown, the president of the National Organization for Marriage, roots for same-sex marriage. Brown is seeking for a constitutional amendment to declare the right of states to define marriage, reported New York Times. Alongside Brown are gay couples still fighting for same-sex marriage by focusing on the “lower equality states,” the states with religion setting a strong value in families and churches.
Writer: Meagan Crowell ~ Multimedia Journalist
