NYT To SCOTUS: Why Are You Waiting?

From the editorial board of the New York Times:

The forces against marriage equality are not going down without a fight. In nearly half the country, gay and lesbian couples are still treated as second-class citizens, denied the respect and dignity — as well as the tangible financial benefits — that come with the ability to marry.

In a speech last month, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who last year became the first justice to officiate at a same-sex wedding, said that the court is keeping an eye on developments in the lower courts, but that there is “no need for us to rush.” Why not?

Every day that the justices do not declare a constitutional right to same-sex marriage, a child in San Antonio feels confusion and shame that her fathers cannot get married; a woman in Atlanta is prohibited from making emergency medical decisions for her life partner; a man in Biloxi, Miss., is denied veteran’s survivor benefits after his husband dies. The consequences of being treated as inferior under the law are real, immediate and devastating.

Same-sex marriage is among the most important civil-rights issues of our time, and the country is ready to resolve it once and for all. The justices have all the information they need to rule that there is a constitutional right to same-sex marriage. What are they waiting for?