Primary sources

Obergefell v. Hodges, 576 US _______ (2015). Retrieved October 1, 2016 from URL
http://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/obergefell-v-hodges/
This is the Supreme Court of the United States case led by Plaintiff, James Obergefell,
who was from Ohio who was denied the right to marry in the State of Ohio. He appealed
that state court ruling to the US Supreme Court and was joined by three other Plaintiffs
from the states of Tennessee, Michigan, and Kentucky. The case was decided by the US
Supreme Court on June 26, 2015 and the opinion and decision was written by Justice
Kennedy. It was held that equal rights for same sex marriage would be extended to all the
states across America. This case and written opinion was one of the main sources of my
research.
T. Tombs. (2016, October 1). Personal Interview.
This was a personal interview with a family member who is an attorney. My conversation
with her allowed me to ask questions about the US Supreme Court case that I was
researching and what the decision meant for citizens such as James Obergefell. It also
helped me in getting an understanding as to the past history of the issue of equal rights
for same sex marriage and why some states allowed same sex couples to marry while
others didnt until the US Supreme Court made its decision on June 26, 2015.
C. Tombs and E. Spivak. (2016, October 1). Two Personal Interviews.
This was a personal interview with my aunt and her girlfriend. I conducted the interview
via FaceTime as they live in California. Interviewing my Aunt and her girlfriend allowed
me to ask questions about how they personally felt about being able to now get married
legally in any state in America and having the same equal rights as everyone else. They
also shared personal stories with me about weddings they attended for a few of their gay
friends who were able to finally get married in California, which was one of the states
that did not allow for gay marriage.
[PBS News Hour]. 2016, June 26. Jim Obergefell responds to Supreme Court decision on
same-sex marriage. [Video File]. Retrieved on October 30, 2016, from
https://youtu.be/qMxWLJGuPJk.
With this speech I was able to understand more about the Plaintiff, Jim Obergefell and
what he was fighting for in his stand for equal rights for same sex marriage.
[TPMTV]. 2016, June 26. President Obama Calls Same Sex Marriage Plaintiff Jim
Obergfell. [Video File]. Retrieved on October 30, 2016, from
https://youtu.be/tiPxU0NJqqI.
After watching this video I learned about the Supreme Court case that was being led by
Plaintiff, Jim Obergefell and how it related to my topic on taking a stand for equal rights
for same sex marriage.

[Michael Ray McLain] 2015, July 1. Love Won The Day (Love Wins For Marriage
Equality!) [Video File]. Retrieved October 30, 2016, from
https://youtu.be/BCeQ8dQxMxE.
The recording of the song made me learn how important the topic of equal rights for
same sex marriage is for many people across America both in the past and present.
[shanebitneycrone] 2015, July 4. Love Wins: Witnessing History. [Video File]. Retrieved
October 30, 2016, from https://youtu.be/j8-Q4ty-c2I.
This recording taught me that many people across America were not able to get married
but now because of the June 26, 2015 Supreme Court ruling same sex marriage is now
legal all in every state.
HV Culture (2011, July 22). Recognition Rising. Retrieved on November 4, 2016 from
URL: http://hypervocal.com/news/2011/infographic-americans-more-accepting-of-nonopposite-marriages-relationships/
From this public opinion poll I was able to see how more Americans were becoming
accepting of the idea that equal rights for same sex marriage should no longer be an issue
of the past.
Timeline of Same-Sex Marriage Laws. Retrieved on November 4, 2016 from URL:
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/2015/06/timeline-of-same-sex-marriage-laws-classresource/
From this timeline I was able to learn about the history of same sex marriage laws and
that was very helpful in my research and seeing the big picture of just how long people
have been taking a stand for equal rights on this issue.
Secondary Sources:
Gay Marriage in the US Supreme Court, 2015 - Gay Marriage - ProCon.org. Retrieved
November 4, 2016 from URL http://gaymarriage.procon.org/view.resource.php?
resourceID=006193
By reading this it helped me for my research on the Supreme Court case and the issues
that were being presented to the be decided upon.
Gay Marriage - ProCon.org. (n.d.). Retrieved November 4, 2016 from
http://gaymarriage.procon.org/
This article was important for my research and understanding the history of banning and
legalizing gay marriage and helped me because it made me understand how long this
issue has been discussed.

Rosenwald, Michael (2015, April 6). How Jim Obergefell Became the Face of the
Supreme Court Gay Marriage Case. Retrieved on November 4, 2016 from URL
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/how-jim-obergefell-became-the-face-of-thesupreme-court-gay-marriage-case/2015/04/06/3740433c-d958-11e4-b3f2607bd612aeac_story.html?utm_term=.661e917f475d
By reading this it helped me to understand more about James Obergefell and how he was
taking a stand for equal rights for same sex marriage and why his court case became so
important.
Teicholz, Adam. (2015, April 28). Meet Jim Obergefell: The Man Behind the Supreme
Court Same Sex Marriage Case. Retrieved on November 4, 2016 from URL
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/video/meet-jim-obergefell-30623286
By watching this video it helped me to understand more about James Obergefell, his life,
why and how he was taking a stand for equal rights for same sex marriage and why his
court case became so important to America.
Totenberg, Nina. (2015, April 28). Legal Battle Over Gay Marriage Hits The Supreme
Court
Tuesday.
Retrieved
on
November
4,
2016
from
URL
http://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2015/04/27/402456198/legal-battle-over-gaymarriage-hits-the-supreme-court-tuesday
By listening to this audio news clip from NPR I learned more about the four Plaintiffs
that were bringing their case to the US Supreme Court, more about the history of same
sex marriage, interesting facts about this issue such as how many states prior to the
decision allowed gay marriage, what would happen if the US Supreme Court ruled
against equal rights for same sex marriage and that a decision would take some time
following the actual court hearing. It was helpful to hear an audio clip about the issue and
helped to put a better understanding on some of my prior research.
Liptak, Adam. (2015, Jan. 16). Supreme Court to Decide Marriage Rights for Gay
Couples
Nationwide.
Retrieved
on November
4, 2016 from
URL
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/17/us/supreme-court-to-decide-whether-gaysnationwide-can-marry.html?_r=0
This article gave me insight into how controversial this issue had been in the past in the
Courts and that this same issue had not been heard before just a few months prior. It
showed that America was still unsure and doubtful as to whether the longstanding issue
of the issue of equal rights for same sex marriage would be resolved or not.