Supreme Court hears oral arguments on Gay Marriage

This last week the Supreme Court heard the cases of Hollingsworth v. Perry and Windsor v. United States. The rulings of these two cases have the potential to either overturn or uphold certain legislation currently restricting same-sex marriage in the United States.

This is the first time the Supreme Court has heard a case involving questions of same sex marriage, but it is easy to see the connection to other civil rights issues. 

While the Supreme Court does have the ability to legalize same-sex marriage across the board, it may also leave the issue in the hands of the individual states.

According to the Tenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people,” meaning that any rights not explicitly granted to the federal government rest with the states. The Constitution does not explicitly designate the right to define marriage, leading to the argument that the issue is one best left to the states.