Reference no: EM133497583
Assignment:
You are studying the 14th Amendment, substantive due process, and equal protection. Read Obergefell v. Hodges, in which the U.S. Supreme Court held that all states must recognize same-sex marriage.
To further your understanding of the Obergefell case, review the following supplemental materials:
- Supreme Court Issues Historic Opinion on Marriage Equality
- Obergefell v. Hodges
- Fourteenth Amendment's Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses
- Strict Scrutiny, Intermediate Scrutiny, and Rational Basis Tests
- Doctrine of Incorporation
After reading the Obergefell case and reviewing the supplemental materials, respond to the following six questions
1. Summarize the plaintiffs' arguments in the Obergefell case that their substantive due process and equal protection rights had been violated.
2. Explain the Court's ruling and reasoning in the Obergefell case.
3. Discuss any prior Court cases that may have laid the foundation for the Obergefell case, such as Lawrence v. Texas and Bowers v. Hardwick. Review the following supplemental materials concerning the Lawrence and Bowers cases:
- Sex and the Supreme Court: The True Story of Lawrence v. Texas
- Overruled! The Case That Brought Down Sodomy Laws
- Lawrence v. Texas
4. Explain what societal changes influenced the Courts' decisions from Bowers v. Hardwick (1986), in which the Court upheld a Georgia statute that criminalized sodomy, to the Lawrence v. Texas (2003) that overruled Bowers, to the 2015 Obergefell case that recognized same-sex marriage.
5. Summarize why the dissenting justices in the Obergefell case disagreed with the majority opinion.
6. Finally, discuss whether you agree with the majority opinion or the dissenting justices. Explain your answer in detail.