With Edward Rosenstein‘s new documentary The Freedom To Marry we know that it’s going to have a happy ending. He starts in earnest to trace the journey to last year’s U.S. Supreme Court’s groundbreaking decision that literally legalized same-sex marriage in all 50 States overnight, a few months before Attorney Mary Bonauto makes her formal appearance before the 9 Justices who will go on to change the course of LGBT history. This profile however is not just about her, but equally important, it is that of Evan Wolfson the leading force behind the whole ‘Freedom To Marry’ campaign who started the whole ball rolling some 32 years ago as a Harvard undergraduate.
It was Wolfson’s foresight and dogged determination to pursue the whole concept of same sex marriage for the past three decades when most other pundits, including major LGBT organizations, kept insisting that demanding this was too much and too soon. Now a year later when the community is already starting to take gay marriage for granted, it is timely to stand back and be reminded of the sheer magnitude of the task that Wolfson and his organization spearheaded to give us the best chance of getting the right outcome.
Rosenstein followed a Michigan lesbian couple April DeBoer and Jayne Rowse who were fighting for the right to marry so that they could both legally adopt their children and who were plaintiff’s in Supreme Court Brief. It was, as all the activists and lawyers insisted, essential to show to the opposition that what this case was about more than anything else was about real people who simple wanted to have their own family choices legally recognized like everyone else. By the time of the Supreme Court Case, 36 States had by one means or another already legalized same sex marriage, but Marc Solomon the Campaign Director of Freedom to Marry voiced the worry that if the Court didn’t rule in their favor, then this would be a clear signal for this States to start unravelling their own laws too.
What this documentary shows is that just in the past two decades newish LGBT organizations have pivoted into becoming professional strategists and seasoned activists who micro-managed every detail of their campaigns. They appreciated that when fighting for any inequality to be removed, nothing should be taken for granted. It also highlighted the fact that, compared to the extremist supporters of the National Organization of Marriage with their hot-headed rhetoric, Wolfson and Bonauto and all their associates channelled their passion into reasoned well-thought arguments based on facts, that seems to have really helped them win the day.
This is a heartwarming story, told in a compelling fashion, that will serve to always remind us who we really need to thank and honor for this momentous step in establishing full equality for the LGBT community.
