Which case recognized the right to same-sex marriage?

Which case recognized the right to same-sex marriage?

• A. Windsor v. United States
• B. Obergefell v. Hodges
• C. Lawrence v. Texas
• D. Loving v. Virginia

Answer: (B)

Same-sex marriage is recognized as a constitutional right under the Fourteenth Amendment, protected as a fundamental liberty and guaranteed by equal protection. The ruling held that state bans on same-sex marriage violate these guarantees because they deny a core personal choice to a group of citizens and treat related couples differently. As a result, states must license marriages between same-sex couples and recognize those marriages performed in other states, creating a nationwide standard. The decision highlights dignity and the government's obligation to respect same-sex relationships on the same terms as opposite-sex ones. This differs from Windsor, which dealt with federal recognition of marriages for federal purposes rather than a broad right; and from Lawrence and Loving, which address different issues—privacy in intimate conduct and interracial marriage, not the nationwide recognition of same-sex marriage.

Same-sex marriage is recognized as a constitutional right under the Fourteenth Amendment, protected as a fundamental liberty and guaranteed by equal protection. The ruling held that state bans on same-sex marriage violate these guarantees because they deny a core personal choice to a group of citizens and treat related couples differently. As a result, states must license marriages between same-sex couples and recognize those marriages performed in other states, creating a nationwide standard. The decision highlights dignity and the government's obligation to respect same-sex relationships on the same terms as opposite-sex ones. This differs from Windsor, which dealt with federal recognition of marriages for federal purposes rather than a broad right; and from Lawrence and Loving, which address different issues—privacy in intimate conduct and interracial marriage, not the nationwide recognition of same-sex marriage.