My day started as it often does — hitting snooze a few too many times, feeding the dogs, packing lunch for my 4-year-old son, Lucas, dropping him off at school before putting in my time at the office. Yet, here I sit on the evening of the 6th Circuit Court ruling upholding Michigan’s ban on same-sex marriage searching for the right word to describe the turn of events in an otherwise typical day.
Our evening activities likely were similar to many families — dinner together, a little playtime, watching a movie while snuggled on the couch. My son, without any prompting, chose one of his favorites, “Despicable Me.” What a fitting descriptor for how I feel about the court’s decision. How despicable that any loving family should feel forced to choose between living in fear and uncertainty, and living free from unjust laws that continue to cast them in the role of second-class citizen.
Until early this year, I was a lifelong resident of the Great Lakes State. I met my husband in Michigan, where we lived together near my immediate and extended family and close friends for more than a decade. We were homeowners, gainfully employed and civically engaged. When we expanded our family, we both were present in the delivery room as we welcomed our son into the world in Michigan. Yet, despite these similarities to thousands of other commitment Michigan couples, the state considered us nothing more than roommates and only recognized one of us as our son’s legal parent. The other relegated to the role of “other adult in household.”
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