Crowds gathered on City Hall Plaza today to raise awareness about two freedom to marry cases to be considered tomorrow by the U.S. Supreme Court. Mayor Menino addressed the crowd, reiterating his support for equal rights for same sex couples.
According to a press release put out by MassEquality, organizers of the rally, “In 2004, Massachusetts became the first state in the country to recognize the legal marriages of same-sex couples. Despite being able to legally wed in Massachusetts, the District of Columbia, and eight other states (Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Iowa, Washington, Maryland, New York), married same-sex couples are denied the federal benefits of marriage because of the Defense of Marriage Act. This means that married same-sex couples are not able to access many of the safety nets afforded other married couples such as social security survivor benefits; Medicaid long-term care benefits; spousal veteran benefits; or rights of inheritance.”