同性婚姻 (tongxing hunyin): Same-sex marriage

On Friday, the Supreme Court of the Untied States legalized same-sex marriage. The court ruled 5-4 that the US Constitution's guarantee of due process and equal protection under the law means that individual states cannot ban same-sex marriage. It is regarded as a historic triumph for the American lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights movement. The US has become the 21st country to legalize same-sex marriage worldwide.

Anthony Kennedy, the majority Chief Justice writing on behalf of the court, said that the hope of lesbian and gay people intending to marry "is not to be condemned to live in loneliness, excluded from one of civilization's oldest institutions. They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right". US President Barack Obama hailed the ruling as "a victory for America" that "made our union a little more perfect".

The White House was lit up in rainbow colors in commemoration of the US Supreme Court's ruling, and hundreds of thousands of LGBT rights supporters, especially gay and lesbian couples, celebrated the ruling across the country. However, legal battles remain to secure the rights of lesbians and gays in the US despite the momentous ruling.