Prop 8 ruling embraces 14th Amendment

A federal judge has ruled that California's Proposition 8, which made same sex-marriage illegal in that state, violates the U.S. Constitution. This is significant for the entire country.

I've already heard howls of disapproval and the accusation that the will of the people has been thwarted, similar to things that have been said in Iowa after our state Supreme Court ruled that a law prohibiting same-sex marriage violated the state's constitution.

This ruling embraces the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment, which calls for equal protection under the law.

Our way of government honors majority rule while it also protects minority rights. If this was not the case, miscegenation would still be illegal in some states and our schools would probably still be segregated.

The right to marry is a fundamental right but it is a right that was denied to same-sex couples under Proposition 8.

Richard Greer

Cedar Rapids