In conjunction with an ongoing same-sex marriage lawsuit, the ACLU of Florida has just petitioned a federal court demanding it instruct the state of Florida to recognize same-sex marriage performed out of state.Â
In March, the ACLU sued the state of Florida to overturn its ban on same-sex marriage. A recent widow has joined that case, and the request for out-of-state recognition stems from her situation.
“Arlene Goldberg and Carol Goldwasser had been friends since the two were teenagers in the Bronx and became a couple at the age of 20,” the ACLU notes. “The two moved to Florida in 1989 for Carol’s health, and travelled to New York to be married in October 2011, three months after the state began performing same-sex marriages. In the months that followed, Carol’s health deteriorated and on March 13, 2014, the same day that the ACLU of Florida announced the lawsuit, Carol Goldwasser passed away after the two had been together for 47 years.”
“My heart broke as Carol faded away, but I knew it was her time to go,†stated Arlene. “I was preparing for the hurt of losing the person I’ve loved for so long, but what makes it even worse is what’s come since, because the law treats us like we never knew each other. Carol and I loved each other for nearly half a century; we were married. That’s supposed to mean something, but Florida says I’m just a stranger to Carol.â€
Sadly, despite the overturn of section 3 of DOMA and the federal government’s recognition of same-sex marriages, for purposes of social security benefits the federal government does not recognize marriages if they are not legal at the state level. Since Florida does not allow same-sex marriage or even recognize same-sex marriages performed elsewhere, Arlene is not able to collect Carol’s social security benefits — which, if the state of Florida recognized their legal marriage, she could.
There is a separate Florida case, filed in January.Â
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Hat tip:Â Steve Rothhaus/Miami Herald