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Yesterday, in a 5-4 decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, the Supreme Court took a huge step forward in our progress toward a more perfect union:
Gay and lesbian couples won their right to marry.
Following the ruling, President Obama delivered a statement from the Rose Garden. Watch:
"This decision will end the patchwork system we currently have," the President said. "It will end the uncertainty hundreds of thousands of same-sex couples face from not knowing whether their marriage, legitimate in the eyes of one state, will remain if they decide to move [to] or even visit another. This ruling will strengthen all of our communities by offering to all loving same-sex couples the dignity of marriage across this great land."
President Obama traveled to Charleston, South Carolina yesterday to honor the life of pastor and state senator Clementa Pinckney -- one of the nine who lost their lives in last week's shooting at the Emanuel AME Church in Charleston.
In his eulogy, the President highlighted just how much Reverend Pinckney accomplished during his 41 years of life -- being in the pulpit at age 13, a pastor at age 18, and a public servant at age 23. He also emphasized that even in the midst of our sadness, this tragedy has "allowed us to see where we've been blind."
"It would be a betrayal of everything Reverend Pinckney stood for," the President added, "if we allowed ourselves to slip into a comfortable silence again -- once the eulogies have been delivered and the TV cameras have moved on."
Last week, the First Lady headed to the U.K. and Italy on a trip that took her from talking to girls about their education, to helping share tips for healthy living at the Expo, to visiting with our military families stationed abroad.
Mrs. Obama participates in a "Let's Move!" cooking demonstration with Italian and American middle school students at the James Beard American Restaurant. (Official White House Photo by Amanda Lucidon)
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