The US Senate has finally passed legislation to protect same-sex marriage. The Respect for Marriage Act will be implemented after President Joe Biden signs the bill, and the Democrats are in a hurry to make that happen as Republicans will take over the House in 2023.
When will the Bill be Signed?
Steny Hoyer, the majority leader, said that the bill is expected to become law by December 6. Earlier this year, almost fifty of the House Republicans supported the measure, whereas Tuesday’s vote, following support from twelve republicans in the Senate, ended 61-36.
The Respect for Marriage Act is not supposed to codify the supreme court judgment of 2015, which made same-sex marriages legal in the country. But it’s supposed to require the US states to acknowledge all marriages occurring within or outside the state to have been legal when performed.
The states must protect interracial marriages, and any legal marriage, irrespective of race, sex, origin, and ethnicity.
Supporting Same-sex Marriage
As the supreme court ordered changes to the right to abortion in June, same-sex marriage has been considered under threat.
Around seventy percent of the public now supports same-sex marriage. But, many of the US states would enforce a ban on it if the court overturned the right, said the Movement Advancement Project group.
Pete Buttigieg, the US transportation secretary, said before the voting that it’s pretty strange to debate and vote on a very personal and fundamental issue. He said he was hopeful about the act playing a substantial role in protecting so many families.
Democratic senator Sheldon Whitehouse said after the vote that every person has the freedom to choose whom he would marry, and love should be the only criterion, not sex or anything else.
