VOA标准英语2012--Court Overturns California Gay Marriage Ban

Court Overturns California Gay Marriage Ban

Those who back the right of same-sex couples to marry cheered the ruling by the three-judge panel in San Francisco. In their 2-1 decision, the judges upheld the ruling of a lower court, saying Proposition 8 targets gays and lesbians and violates the U.S. Constitution's guarantee of equal rights.
The case is probably far from finished, and same-sex couples are not yet free to marry in California, pending¹ a possible appeal by the proposition's supporters. Some 18,000 same-sex couples wed² in the state in 2008, before Proposition 8 went into effect.
In Los Angeles, Paul Katami, a plaintiff in the case to overturn Proposition 8, was overjoyed. He celebrated³ the news with his partner, Jeff Zarrillo.
“Well, there's always one thing that I'm doing when I get good news is holding the hand of the person that I love and that I want to marry, and so I think we lost a little blood flow for a minute there, but today makes the last almost three years worthwhile," Katami said.
The case brought together two prominent attorneys, David Boies, a liberal, and conservative Theodore Olson, who teamed up in the legal battle against the gay marriage ban. Olson says the court action striking it down is extremely important, much like an earlier ruling that overturned bans by some states on interracial marriage.
"It's a respected federal appellate court upholding a federal district court decision striking down Proposition 8 as violating the United States Constitution," Olson said.
Robert Tyler, general counsel for the group, Advocates for Faith & Freedom, says marriage between one man and one woman has been the historical norm in the law of California and other U.S. states. He says activist⁴ judges are throwing out the vote of the people.
"What should be happening is those activist organizations that want same-sex marriage should go to the people, they should put an initiative on the ballot⁵ and allow the people to vote on it. And if the people vote to allow same-sex marriage in the future, then that's the law of the land," Tyler said.
Marriage in the United States comes under state and not federal jurisdiction⁶. A handful of states conduct same-sex marriages - Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont, as well as the District of Columbia. In the state of Washington, the state Senate last week voted to approve same-sex marriage, and the bill now heads to the lower house of the legislature.
In 1996, the U.S. Congress weighed in on the issue with the Defense⁷ of Marriage Act, or DOMA. The federal law says states cannot be forced to recognize same-sex unions performed in other states.
U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein of California told VOA Tuesday that the California ruling bolsters⁸ efforts in Congress to overturn the act.
"My belief is that DOMA should fall on the same basis that Proposition 8 fell, but in the event it did not or will not, we've produced a bill that would essentially⁹ repeal¹⁰ DOMA," she said.
Supporters and opponents of Proposition 8 are expected back in the courtroom before long. Supporters of the gay marriage ban can ask the full Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to review the case, or appeal it to the U.S. Supreme¹¹ Court.

1 pending   

prep.直到，等待…期间；adj.待定的；迫近的

参考例句：

• The lawsuit is still pending in the state court.这案子仍在州法庭等待定夺。
• He knew my examination was pending.他知道我就要考试了。

2 wed   

v.娶，嫁，与…结婚

参考例句：

• The couple eventually wed after three year engagement.这对夫妇在订婚三年后终于结婚了。
• The prince was very determined to wed one of the king's daughters.王子下定决心要娶国王的其中一位女儿。

3 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

4 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

5 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

6 jurisdiction   

n.司法权，审判权，管辖权，控制权

参考例句：

• It doesn't lie within my jurisdiction to set you free.我无权将你释放。
• Changzhou is under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu Province.常州隶属江苏省。

7 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

8 bolsters   

n.长枕( bolster的名词复数 )；垫子；衬垫；支持物v.支持( bolster的第三人称单数 )；支撑；给予必要的支持；援助

参考例句：

• He used a couple of bolsters to elevate his head. 他用两个垫枕垫头。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The double-row piles with both inclined and horizontal bolsters also analyzed in consideration of staged excavation. 本文亦分析了考虑开挖过程的安置斜撑与带支撑的双排桩支护结构。 来自互联网

9 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

10 repeal   

n.废止，撤消；v.废止，撤消

参考例句：

• He plans to repeal a number of current policies.他计划废除一些当前的政策。
• He has made out a strong case for the repeal of the law.他提出强有力的理由，赞成废除该法令。

11 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。