Congratulations, America!
Today the Supreme Court of the United States voted 5-4 to prohibit states from banning same-sex marriage. I have always been deeply ambivalent about the marriage equality movement because of the way it has emphasized the normalization of queer people, but if there is one thing I have learned in my research, it is that people on the ground do not necessarily buy into the rhetoric of movement officials. As people pour out into the streets today and for Pride celebrations this weekend, we’ll see the full range of lesbians and gays, from “normals” to “genderqueers”, dancing in the street in celebration. And so we should.
But as Jennicet Gutiérrez reminded us just two days ago, once the wedding garb has been dry cleaned, the cake eaten, and the photos posted to FaceBook, more political battles lay ahead. But battling and dancing is what we are good at, isn’t it?
