SCOTUS Will Consider Taking Up a Case to Overturn Obergefell. What You Need to Know
Spencer Macnaughton | Uncloseted Media Weekly Newsletter
Ten years after the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) legalized same-sex marriage nationwide, the justices will consider whether to take up a case that asks them to overturn it. Here’s what you need to know.
Who’s behind it?
Kim Davis, the former Kentucky county clerk who made headlines in 2015 when she was briefly jailed over refusing to issue gay marriage licenses, is arguing in a new petition that Obergefell should be overturned, calling it “egregiously wrong.”
Davis’ case has not been popular with other courts, with a federal appeals court panel dismissing her First Amendment claims earlier this year.
“Not a single judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals showed any interest in Davis's rehearing petition, and we are confident the Supreme Court will likewise agree that Davis's arguments do not merit further attention,” said William Powell, the attorney for the now-married couple who initially sued Davis for damages.
Who’s representing Davis? (Short answer: A group using religion as a cover for homophobia)
Davis is being represented by Liberty Counsel, an influential far-right Christian legal group and Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) designated hate group. SPLC describes them as “a legal organization advocating for anti-LGBT discrimination under the guise of religious liberty.”
In the past, Liberty Counsel has said, “Homosexual conduct can result in significant damage to those involved who engage.” Davis’ attorney, Mat Staver, who is the founder and senior pastor of Liberty Counsel, has said that “same-sex marriage [and] same-sex relationships [are] destructive to individuals and … to our very social fabric.”
What will SCOTUS do?
While the Court has agreed to formally consider the case, it doesn’t mean they’ve decided to take it up yet—look out for that formal decision in the fall.
Roughly 70% of U.S. adults support gay marriage, but support among Republicans has dwindled to less than half in recent years.
And while SCOTUS Justice Clarence Thomas has called for the Court to revisit Obergefell, legal experts—including many conservatives—mostly say that the case is unlikely to make serious waves, with an ABC News legal analyst saying that Trump appointees Amy Coney Barrett and Brett Kavanaugh have expressed little interest in revisiting it.
Thanks to the 2022 Respect for Marriage Act, overturning Obergefell would not invalidate existing gay marriages. It would, however, allow states to prevent new ones.
I am taking next week off for some much-needed vacation, so we won’t be publishing any new stories. :)
We’ve started the Uncloseted News Network!
For editors interested in republishing our stories and want a summary of our recent work sent to them every Tuesday morning, email me and sam.donndelinger@unclosetedmedia.com. We would love to add you to our growing list!
Supreme Court Formally Asked to Overturn Landmark Same-Sex Marriage Ruling (ABC News)
Kim Davis, a former clerk who refused gay couples, brought the appeal.
United Church of Canada Delivers Formal Apology to 2S and LGBTQIA+ Communities (Global News)
Church leaders acknowledged the lasting pain caused by past policies and pledged ongoing work toward inclusion and justice.
Indonesia Court Sentences 2 Men to 80 Lashes Each for What It Decided Was Gay Sex (CBS News)
The trial at the Islamic Shariah District Court in Banda Aceh, the provincial capital, was held behind closed doors.
Hegseth Posts Video of Pastor He Follows Calling for Gay Sex Ban (The Daily Beast)
The evangelical leader says in the clip that the America where gay sex was outlawed was “not a totalitarian hellhole.”
Federal Court Allows Arkansas to Enforce Its Ban on Trans Health Care Citing Skrmetti Decision (LGBTQ Nation)
Arkansas was the first state to ban gender-affirming care and a court blocked it. But because of the Supreme Court, it has been allowed to take effect.
Over the next week, be on the lookout for new Uncloseted reporting:
🆕 In queer spaces that promise inclusion, many gay Asian men still face a painful mix of fetishization, exclusion and discrimination. Our latest story by Jake Angelo unpacks the layered stigma, silent biases and resilience of those pushing back against racism within the LGBTQ community.
Thanks for reading! Feel free to email me with questions, complaints and story ideas!
Spencer Macnaughton, Editor-In-Chief — spencer@unclosetedmedia.com
If objective, nonpartisan, rigorous, LGBTQ-focused journalism is important to you, please consider making a tax-deductible donation through our fiscal sponsor, Resource Impact, by clicking this button:
I implore you to think strategically about how best to stop Obergefell from being overturned and keep publication about this to a minimum. I am an attorney and I volunteer with a nonprofit that focuses on stopping anti-lgbtq policy from being implemented. If Obergefell goes, Windsor is next, then maybe even Lawrence v. Texas.
The amount of media attention a case receives is nearly perfectly correlated with which cases are granted cert. This Supreme Court likes being in the news.
There is no possible benefit from screaming about this from the mountaintops before SCOTUS decides whether to grant certiorari. By ignoring it, we may avoid giving anti-queer extremists an opportunity to undue all of the rights and privileges that flow from the right to get married. If they grant certiorari, we can still raise 10 kinds of hell in a moment when it may be more impactful.
A woman, knew deep in court costs and fines from her last loss has decided to go to SCOTUS to try to get out of paying the blessed fine? Can you say your family will still be paying these fees after you're gone?