PUBLIC POLICY IN ACTION: A Reflection on DOMA and Prop 8 Forty-six years.

It has been forty-six years since the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that laws banning interracial marriage were unconstitutional in the landmark case Loving v. Virginia (1967). This decision changed the national landscape and brought to light many of the prejudiced, racially-motivated, and disenfranchising laws that had plagued and continue to plague the United States. Since then countless rulings have been issued to support voting rights, a womans right to choose, diversity in college admissions and many in between. Then yesterday, June 26, 2013, the Supreme Court added to their list two new declarations that continued to advance equality for Americans. In all respects the rulings overturning Section 3 of DOMA and rescinding Prop 8 were victories for the GLBT community. Section 3 held the hotly contested language defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman. This heteronormative perspective was tossed aside as the Court deemed it too limited in scope and discriminatory against couples who may not fall into this designation. Beyond this, it also provided equal federal benefits and protections to same-sex couples who are legally married. While this list contains many, some of the well-known include: access to social security benefits, health care, and retirement allocations. However this was only half the battle and moments later the Court issued their second landmark ruling. By determining the appellants to Prop 8 lacked sufficient cause to do so, the Court upheld the lower courts decision deeming the legislation unconstitutional; effectively allowing for same-sex marriage to resume in California unimpeded. As the NASPA Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender (GLBT) Knowledge Community we seek to meet the needs of a unique and diverse demographic. Indeed while we cannot speak on behalf of a collective reaction, we can comfortably assert that undoubtedly yesterdays decisions had a groundbreaking impact on all of o ur membership regardless of their stance on the issues. More importantly as we advance in a world post-DOMA and Prop 8 it is with an assurance that there is still work to be done. Public policy on paper may dominate the headlines and captivate conversation however translating this into action is critical. As a Knowledge Community we must now work to educate our membership and NASPA members about how this legislation will impact higher education across the country. Examining the shift in how institutional human resources support their GLBT professionals and students is an imperative. Additionally, we must recognize with this decision the Court did not address Section 2 of DOMA which provides states with the autonomy to individually decide whether they will recognize or ignore same-sex marriages performed in other states. Simply put, these decisions are not synonymous with nationalized same-sex marriage and as such state and regional advocacy efforts still need support. Beyond this, we must also strive to address other areas where disparity may exist for populations within the GLBT collective. Appreciating the intersecting identities that hold claim to multiple groups is critical to our work and requires we dissect the decisions carefully to project our next steps. For queer people of color the week has been noted by bittersweet melodies as one identity was affirmed via the DOMA and Prop 8 decision, but another upended by the Voting Rights Act outcome. In addition, with an increasing population of immigrant and undocumented individuals, work still needs to be done around the DREAM Act and supporting their experience. To this end, delving into the implications of the Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl (2013) ruling reveals a troubling precedent not only for American Indian and indigenous persons, but also for any transracial or transnational adoptions that may face custody disputes. Finally, even realizing implications such as the

on-going debate in Texas around womens abortion rights (in respect to Roe v. Wade) sheds light on a number of discourses the Knowledge Community cannot overlook. This requires an acute reflection on both external legal restrictions and internal social norms that have marginalized and disenfranchised populations who belong to the GLBT family in totality. What yesterdays decisions have revealed is the collective voice was heard and change was enacted, but this momentum must continue for equality to be achieved for all. For now, we can all jointly celebrate yet another example of democracy in action as the Supreme Court, duly appointed to serve the needs of the People, has upheld their role. With this however we must keep one eye poised on the past to remember from where we have come in the decades before, a watchful hand on the pulse of our social present, and an imagination keenly devoted to actualizing our future. This is how we will see sustainable change realized and ultimately enacted for the decades to come. In pride, Taris G. Mullins, NASPA GLBT Knowledge Community Public Policy Core Member