Same-Sex Couples Sue for Marriage Equality in Massachusetts (2003)

In Lawrence v. Texas (2003), the U.S. Supreme Court struck down sodomy laws, ruling that such statutes undermined the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause. In that same year, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court heard a case in which seven same-sex couples sued the commonwealth of Massachusetts for denying them marriage licenses. At the outset of this NewsHour with Jim Lehrer report, two of the plaintiffs, Julie and Hillary Goodbridge, explain some examples of rights and protections they lack because of the state’s unwillingness to recognize their marriage. The NewsHour piece also includes statements from representatives of the Massachusetts Family Institute and the Massachusetts Catholic Conference, two organizations that opposed marriage for same-sex couples. Soon after this report, the Massachusetts court ruled that state laws prohibiting same-sex marriage violated the plaintiffs’ constitutional rights. This decision vaulted marriage equality towards the center of political discourse—not just in Massachusetts, but across the nation.

The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer | NewsHour Productions : Washington, DC.) | July 7, 2003 | This video clip and associated transcript appear from 24:46 - 29:36 in the full record.