The US Supreme Court trod cautiously Tuesday as it considered gay marriage, with justices appearing hesitant to deliver a sweeping historic verdict on the emotionally charged issue.
On a day long awaited by both sides of the debate, thousands of gay rights advocates waving US and rainbow flags descended on the Court, outnumbering a rally of religious activists opposed to same-sex marriage.
The Supreme Court will take months to issue a ruling, but several justices indicated during their 80-minute debate that they would be in no hurry to issue a verdict that could extend the right to same-sex marriage to the entire country.
Justice Anthony Kennedy voiced reluctance for the Court to step into "uncharted waters" on a case involving Californian law. His remarks are closely watched as he is often the swing vote on the nine-member bench.
Kennedy said there was a lack of sociological data to judge the effect of same-sex marriage. "We have five years of information to weigh against 2,000 years of history or more," he added.
But he also expressed sympathy for an estimated 40,000 children living in California with same-sex couples. "They want their parents to have full recognition and full status," he said.
Both Kennedy and Justice Sonia Sotomayor wondered out loud whether the Supreme Court should have agreed to hear the case at all.
"The problem with this case is that you're really asking ... for us to go into uncharted waters," Kennedy told Theodore Olson, one of the lawyers arguing against the ban. Olson, a staunch conservative, served as US solicitor general 2001-2004 under president George W. Bush.
Justice Samuel Alito, a conservative, also spoke of a "lack of data" on same-sex marriage since it was first legalized in The Netherlands in 2001.
"You want us to step in and render a decision based on an assessment of the effects of this institution which is newer than cellphones or the Internet?" he said.
Liberal justices argued it was discriminatory to define marriage solely by whether a couple can bear children. Justice Elena Kagan said that by the same argument, the government could ban marriages of couples above age 55.
Nine US states and the capital Washington allow same-sex marriage.
While some rights advocates hope the Supreme Court will guarantee gay marriage across the United States, its opponents want to leave the decision to state lawmakers.
The top court is hearing two cases.
The first concerns the constitutionality of California's "Proposition 8," the ballot initiative through which in 2008 voters ended right to same-sex marriage in the nation's most populous state.
Sandy Stier, one of plaintiffs, said the referendum had hurt her family by invalidating her marriage. She and her partner, Kris Perry, have four sons.
"I, like all Americans, believe in equality. I also believe in our judicial system and I have great faith in it. But more than anything, I believe in love," Stier said on the Supreme Court steps.
"It is our hope that we can move forward and remove this harm from society so that gays and lesbians in California can go back to their lives living equally alongside their neighbors with the same rights and protections."
On Wednesday, the court will consider the Defense of Marriage Act, a federal law which defines marriage as an act between a man and woman.
Outside the Supreme Court protesters from both sides of the debate set out their positions.
One demonstrator dressed in pink and danced to music of Lady Gaga, the superstar singer and supporter of gay rights.
Among opponents, protesters pushed strollers and chanted: "Every child deserves a mom and dad."
"All people are capable of loving children, but all the love in the world can't turn a mother into a father or a father into a mother," said Cathy Ruse of the Family Research Council, a conservative Christian group.
Opinion polls have repeatedly indicated that most Americans now accept the principle of same-sex marriage, including an overwhelming majority of younger Americans.
President Barack Obama in May 2012 became the first US president to publicly back gay marriage.
White House spokesman Jay Carney declined to predict how the Supreme Court would rule, but added that the treatment of gay and lesbians "goes to core principles about who we are as a country."
AFP
Wed Mar 27 2013
AWANI Ringkas: Langkah "war on sugar"
Ikuti rangkuman berita utama yang menjadi tumpuan sepanjang hari di Astro AWANI menerusi AWANI Ringkas.
Belanjawan 2025: Peruntukan terbesar RM421 bilion
Analisis pembentangan Belanjawan 2025 oleh tiga penganalisis ekonomi.
AWANI 7:45 [18/10/2024] - Gaji minimum RM1,700 | Perbezaan hutang terkumpul dan hutang baru | Sehingga tujuh luruan Monsun Timur Laut
1. Belanjawan 2025, gaji minimum naik antara jadi tumpuan.
2. Jangan keliru hutang negara, kerajaan tidak tambah hutang baharu.
3. MetMalaysia ramal banjir di pantai timur, Sarawak dan Sabah.
4. Lima dikhuatiri lemas, perahu lumba karam ketika latihan regata Sarawak.
2. Jangan keliru hutang negara, kerajaan tidak tambah hutang baharu.
3. MetMalaysia ramal banjir di pantai timur, Sarawak dan Sabah.
4. Lima dikhuatiri lemas, perahu lumba karam ketika latihan regata Sarawak.
AWANI Borneo [18/10/2024] – Perahu karam | Belanjawan 2025 | Pan Borneo dan SSLR
Tumpuan Awani Borneo 18 Oktober 2024 bersama Syaff Shukri
1. Lima peserta latihan regata dikhuatiri lemas di Sungai Sarawak.
2. Pemberian khas Sabah, Sarawak dicadang dinaikan RM600 juta.
3. Pembangunan jalan raya di Sabah, Sarawak terus diperkukuh
1. Lima peserta latihan regata dikhuatiri lemas di Sungai Sarawak.
2. Pemberian khas Sabah, Sarawak dicadang dinaikan RM600 juta.
3. Pembangunan jalan raya di Sabah, Sarawak terus diperkukuh
Tanda retak politik Filipina? Naib Presiden Sara Duterte dakwa Marcos tidak cekap
Sara Duterte mendakwa, Ferdinand Marcos Jr menjalankan pentadbirannya tanpa perancangan jelas.
AWANI Ringkas: Pembentangan Belanjawan 2025
Ikuti rangkuman berita utama yang menjadi tumpuan sepanjang hari di Astro AWANI menerusi AWANI Ringkas.
#AWANIRingkas 18 Oktober 2024 | 9 PM
Berikut merupakan rangkuman berita setakat 9 malam, 18 Oktober 2024
1️⃣ Pembentangan Belanjawan 2025
2️⃣ Sektor pendidikan
3️⃣ Sektor kesihatan
#awaniringkas
1️⃣ Pembentangan Belanjawan 2025
2️⃣ Sektor pendidikan
3️⃣ Sektor kesihatan
#awaniringkas
Belanjawan 2025: Peruntukan AI dinaikkan sebanyak RM50 juta
Kerajaan komited memperluaskan pendidikan berkaitan Kecerdasan Buatan (AI) ke semua universiti penyelidikan dengan peruntukan RM50 juta, berbanding RM20 juta tahun ini.
Latihan regata bertukar tragedi, lima peserta dikhuatiri lemas
Insiden melibatkan 15 peserta menggunakan satu bot untuk latihan regata. 10 individu berjaya selamatkan diri manakala lima yang lain masih hilang.
UAE hantar tiga lagi pesawat bersama 120 tan bantuan untuk Lubnan
UAE setakat ini telah menghantar 12 pesawat yang membawa 515 tan bekalan bantuan.