Paper Guidelines:
• Between 1,000-1,250 words in the body of the paper (does not include cover page or references)
• Minimum of 5 academic sources, included at the end of the paper in a works cited page
• Paper must conform to the APA style format
o Section headings are optional
Same-Sex Marriage
o Evaluate and discuss the Supreme Court’s 2015 decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, in which the Court held that, based on the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause, states cannot prohibit same-sex couples from getting married.
o Read the majority and dissenting opinions of the Court.
o What are some of the major impacts of this case on same-sex couples?
o The dissenters from the decision – including the Chief Justice, John Roberts – argued that it was inappropriate for the Court to circumvent the democratic process. Is this correct? Would it have been better for individual states to make the decision regarding same-sex marriage, or is the majority correct, that the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment protects all in the area of marriage?
