U.S. Senate passes Respect for Marriage Act
On Tuesday, with a bipartisan final vote of 61-36, the United States Senate passed the Respect for Marriage Act to protect same-sex and interracial marriage.
A dozen Republican senators from across the country voted with Democrats to send the legislation back to the U.S. House of Representatives for a vote. It took months of behind-the-scenes effort to bring 10-plus Republicans on board and pass the version that overcame a filibuster in the Senate before Thanksgiving.
The House will need final approval for President Joe Biden to then sign it into law.
The House is expected to approve it, considering it initially passed the bill in July 2022.
Threats to LGBTQ+ rights jolted bipartisan effort
The move by some Senate Republicans to work with Democrats comes amid the rise of legal threats to LGBTQ+ rights in America.
There is also political worry that marriage equality could be overturned after the United States Supreme Court struck down the constitutional right to an abortion this past summer.
In his concurring opinion in the case, Dobbs v. Jackson, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote that previous rulings granting federal protections for same-sex marriage and intimacy under the Fourteenth Amendment should also be reconsidered.
Thomas’ judicial forewarning was enough to jolt the bipartisan effort to protect the right to marry for millions of same-gender couples through the Respect for Marriage Act. While Thomas did not indicate in his Dobbs opinion an interest in undoing the legality of U.S. interracial marriages, of which he is a part of himself, the bill would also enshrine protections for marriage based on race.
Respect for Marriage Act: A compromise and a ‘first step’
The Respect for Marriage Act (RFMA) would, for the first time, provide statutory authority for same-sex and interracial marriages and allows the federal government to bring a civil lawsuit against anyone who violates the statutory rights of gay, lesbian or interracial couples.
The bill also notably repeals the 1996 federal law, the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which once defined marriage as between a man and a woman.
RFMA, however, does not require all states to allow same-sex marriage, even though that is the current reality under the 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges decision. Rather, if the Supreme Court overturned Obergefell and previous state prohibitions on same-sex marriage came back into effect, the Respect for Marriage Act would require states and the federal government to respect marriages conducted in places where it is legal.
There are also religious exceptions. Republican supporters have emphasized the elements in this Senate version that protect nonprofit and religious organizations from having to provide support for same-sex marriages.
Pennsylvania State Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta, who is the state’s first openly gay lawmaker of color and a former U.S. Senate candidate, said RFMA is a “first step” and admits that it’s clear from the language of the bill that it is of compromise for Democrats.
“We’re still in a position where basic fundamental human rights are still up for such pitch debate,” Rep. Kenyatta said.