英语新闻一起读37

标题：Supreme Court: Same-sex couples can marry in all 50 states

The Supreme Court ruled Friday that same-sex couples have a right to marry nationwide, in a historic decision that invalidates gay marriage bans in more than a dozen states.

●historic：历史性的 a historic occasion / decision / victory 历史性的时刻/决定/胜利 historical：历史学的；和历史有关的historical figure历史人物，historical background历史背景 ，historical documents / research史学文献/研究。

●validate：证实; 使生效≈confirm ≠invalidate 使无效，证明错误

Gay and lesbian（女同） couples already can marry in 36 states and the District of Columbia. But in a 5-4 ruling, the court held that the 14th Amendment requires states to issue marriage licenses for same-sex couples and to recognize such marriages performed in other states.

●Amendment：修正案（第X修正案在考研的真题中是出现过的，感性趣的可以了解一下美国都有哪些宪法修正案）

The ruling means the remaining 14 states that did not allow such unions, in the South and Midwest, will have to stop enforcing their bans. Already, gay marriages were underway Friday in several states where they had been banned. A court in Atlanta issued marriage licenses to three same-sex couples Friday morning, soon after the decision. Other licenses reportedly were issued in Arkansas and Texas -- where Gov. Greg Abbott also issued a memo directing state agency heads to protect religious liberties.

●underway：进行中。外刊例句：An investigation is underway to identify the cause of the fire.目前已就火灾原因展开调查。

Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote the majority opinion, just as he did in the court's previous three major gay rights cases dating back to 1996.

●背景知识：美国联邦最高法院由首席法官1人和法官8人组成，9位大法官由美国总统征得参议院同意后任命，只要忠于职守，可终身任职。大法官可以分为保守派和自由派，如今的最高法院仍旧是保守派领先。比如其首席大法官就是强硬的保守派，举个例子比如坚决反对堕胎。今天美国最高法院的同性恋平权判决意见的主笔者是安东尼肯尼迪大法官。他常被认为是最高法院中唯一的摇摆票，在很多投票5:4的案件中都处于关键地位。他立场倾向中间偏右，所谓中间偏右是说其偏保守，因此这次很多人评论他是叛徒。

"No union is more profound than marriage," Kennedy wrote, joined by the court's four more liberal justices. He continued: "Under the Constitution, same-sex couples seek in marriage the same legal treatment as opposite-sex(异性) couples, and it would disparage their choices and diminish their personhood（人格） to deny them this right."

The outcome is the culmination of two decades of Supreme Court litigation over marriage, and gay rights generally. Cheers broke out outside the Supreme Court when the decision was announced.

●culmination：顶点，高潮（往往也是终点，结局）

Speaking in the Rose Garden, as he did a day earlier after the high court upheld a key component of his health care overhaul, President Obama called the ruling a "victory for America."

●upheld：支持,维护(正义):We have a duty to uphold the law. 维护法律是我们的责任。 维持,确认(原判、裁决等):uphold a conviction / an appeal / a complaint 维持原判；受理上诉

The president said it would "end the patchwork system we currently have" and the uncertainty gay couples face over whether their unions will be recognized in other states.

●patch :补丁；修补，打补丁→patchwork :做名词 指拼凑物，大杂烩。 "This ruling will strengthen all of our communities," Obama said.

文章里也提到了几位大法官的反对意见，内容如下。

But other justices argued that the court should not be able to order states to change their marriage definition. Chief Justice John Roberts, in a dissent joined by Justices Clarence Thomas and Antonin Scalia, called the ruling an "extraordinary step."

"Many people will rejoice at this decision, and I begrudge none their celebration. But for those who believe in a government of laws, not of men, the majority's approach is deeply disheartening," he wrote. "... The majority's decision is an act of will, not legal judgment."

Roberts wrote: "If you are among the many Americans -- of whatever sexual orientation -- who favor expanding same-sex marriage, by all means celebrate today's decision. ... But do not celebrate the Constitution. It had nothing to do with it."

Each of the four dissenting（不同意的） justices also wrote a separate dissent. Prominent social conservatives（保守派）, meanwhile, blasted the decision. Tony Perkins, head of the Family Research Council, said it puts the government on a "collision（冲突） course with America's cherished religious freedoms（宗教自由）."

●conserve：保护，保存 →conservatism：保守主义→ conservative：保守的，守旧的conservative attitude/views

The ruling will not take effect immediately because the court gives the losing side roughly three weeks to ask for reconsideration（复议）. But some state officials and county clerks might decide there is little risk in issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples.