“Love v. Kentucky”: How the Bluegrass State worked its way into marriage equality
“Love v. Kentucky” (2017), directed by Alex Schuman, documents the litigation by six same-sex couples in Kentucky and the role these cases would play in the final Obergefell v. Hodges opinion at the US Supreme Court in 2015, making recognition of same-sex marriages among all states the laws of the land.
The couples were often elderly. At least one or two had raised children, and one had survived non-Hodgkins lymphoma of one husband, with the other shaving in sympathy. One of the couples was Timothy Love and Lawrence Ysunza (USA Today story).
The state tried to use arguments based on “tradition” (Robert Schuler’s old idea from the “Hour of Power” at the Crystal Cathedral in CA back in the 80s), which amounted to nothing. Then the state tried to make a connection to the need for reliable procreation.
But there was little said about how heterosexual couples were “injured”, other than the fact that their social supports didn’t stand out or identify them (as reproductively heterosexual) as clearly once gay marriage was legal.
The film doesn’t get to the narrative of Kim Davis, the Rowan County clerk who went to jail for refusing to sign her name to same-sex marriage certificates, until the end. The governor pushed through a law saying that clerks don’t have to sign their own names to certificates if their religious beliefs are affronted (by lawful duties in their public employment which normally uses their names). NBC News has a good summary of the story here.
The justices in Kentucky noted how quickly same-sex marriage had evolved in public opinion. In 2006, neighboring Virginia had tried to shut down same-sex marriage (and even civil union) with the Marshall-Newman amendment.
In the 1970s, I once reported to a manager whose last name was “Husbands”.
Pride Central channel now offers full film (licensed, Gravitas Ventures, playable on YT)
Wiki on same-sex marriage in Kentucky.
Wikipedia image of downtown Louisville KY, similar to film.
Fact table:
Name: “Love v. Kentucky”
Director, writer: Alex Schuman
Released: 2017
Format: HD video
When and how viewed: Amazon instant; also YouTube is available $3.99 to $4.99
Length: 87
Rating: NA
Companies: Gravitas Ventures
Link: official