Jeff Zarrillo and Paul Katami, two of the plaintiffs in the Proposition 8 case, celebrated the Supreme Court’s pro-marriage equality rulings on Wednesday with a heartfelt proposal on the steps of the Court.
“We are American and we will not be treated like second-class citizens,” Katami said. “We just want to get married because it’s the natural next step in our relationship….So today is a good day. It’s the day I finally get to look at the man that I love and finally say will you please marry me.”
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The Court handed down a 5–4 decision holding that supporters of California’s anti-gay Proposition 8 did not have legal standing to appeal District Judge Vaughn Walker’s decision striking the marriage ban. This will likely allow California to once again perform same-sex marriages.
Five justices also struck down Defense of Marriage Act, ruling that “By seeking to displace this protection and treating those persons as living in marriages less respected than others, the federal statute is in violation of the Fifth Amendment.”