By: Hailey Lau
On Tuesday, November 29th, 2022, the Senate passed the Respect for Marriage Act, a legislative bill that protects same-sex and interracial marriage at the federal level. All Democrats, 12 Republicans and 2 Independents helped pass the bill with a vote of 61-36.
Democrats brought up the bill after Justice Clarence Thomas’s concurring opinion in the Dobbs decision that Obergefell v. Hodges, a case that legalized same-sex marriage, rested on the same principle of Roe v Wade, which was overturned.
The bill quickly passed both chambers of Congress with the help of Senator Tammy Baldwin – the first openly gay Senator – and Republicans and Democrats were able to agree on a specific issue regarding basic human rights.
Not only does this act enforce protections on same-sex marriage, it also provides federal benefits to these couples, in which the previous Defense of Marriage Act did not do. As the LGBTQIA+ community has struggled for many years to gain basic rights to marriage and equality, this bill seems to be a step in the right direction for the future.
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