Connect with us

'BITTER AND LASTING WOUNDS'

SCOTUS Justice Alito Delivers ‘Tirade’ Claiming Same-Sex Marriage Infringes on Civil Rights of Anti-LGBTQ Americans

Published

on

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito Thursday night in the company of his Federalist Society friends unleashed years of pent-up anger in a speech at the right wing group’s convention.

One of his many targets was the court’s landmark 2015 decision in Obergefell, which found that same-sex couples have the same constitutional rights and responsibilities as their different-sex couples peers. Alito dissented in that 5-4 decision.

Calling it “a grievance-laden tirade,” Slate’s Mark Joseph Stern writes that “Alito abandoned any pretense of impartiality in his speech.” He likens the conservative jurist’s speech to “a burn book for many cases he has participated in, particularly those in which he dissented.”

Alito did not mince words Thursday night, sharing his clear anger and offense as he delivered the keynote address to the Federalist Society 2020 National Lawyers Convention.

“You can’t say that marriage is a union between one man and one woman,” Alito lamented, in a twisted version of the truth. “Until very recently, that’s what the vast majority of Americans thought. Now it’s considered bigotry.”

“That this would happen after our decision in Obergefell should not have come as a surprise,” he continued, noting that he could see “where the decision would lead.”

“I wrote the following: ‘I assume that those who cling to old beliefs will be able able to whisper their thoughts in the recesses of their homes. But if they repeat those views in public, they will risk being labeled as bigots and treated as such by governments employers and schools.’ That is just what is coming to pass.”

“One of the great challenges for the Supreme Court going forward will be to protect freedom of speech,” Alito warns, clearly concerned only for the freedom of speech of his fellow conservatives who oppose equality.

He laments, “that freedom is falling out of favor in some circles. We need to do whatever we can to prevent it from becoming a second tier constitutional right.”

In his Obergefell dissent, Alito warned the Court’s decision would lead to “bitter and lasting wounds.” Five years later, it seems, he meant his own.

 

 

Continue Reading
Click to comment
 
 

Enjoy this piece?

… then let us make a small request. The New Civil Rights Movement depends on readers like you to meet our ongoing expenses and continue producing quality progressive journalism. Three Silicon Valley giants consume 70 percent of all online advertising dollars, so we need your help to continue doing what we do.

NCRM is independent. You won’t find mainstream media bias here. From unflinching coverage of religious extremism, to spotlighting efforts to roll back our rights, NCRM continues to speak truth to power. America needs independent voices like NCRM to be sure no one is forgotten.

Every reader contribution, whatever the amount, makes a tremendous difference. Help ensure NCRM remains independent long into the future. Support progressive journalism with a one-time contribution to NCRM, or click here to become a subscriber. Thank you. Click here to donate by check.

Trending

Copyright © 2020 AlterNet Media.