“I’m proud of what was and scared of what will be”
Iowa sure has changed in the 15 years since the Varnum decision
Fifteen years ago this week, Iowa made national headlines as the state Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage. Iowa became only the third state in the country, making the state a leader before the US Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage some six years later.
All the national networks and major newspapers led with Iowa’s bold decision. On Wednesday night of this week, same-sex advocates held a celebratory dinner to rejoice over Iowa’s leadership role and lament the rightward shift the state has taken since then.
Big screen TV’s displayed the headlines from the 2007 and April 2009 New York Times.
New York Times headlines displayed at OneIowa event April 3, 2024
Two people in attendance received standing ovations. The first was recently retired Polk County district court judge Robert Hanson, who heard the original Varnum vs. Brien case in his Des Moines courtroom and ruled that the state prohibition on same-sex marriage could not stand. That was in 2007 and his decision was stayed some four hours later until the appeal process could wind its way through Iowa’s Supreme Court, which took another year-and-a-half.
In an interview, Judge Hanson told me he attended the event because, “This is a real cause for me. I support the cause. I’ve never lost a minute of sleep over my decision. I’m proud of it.”
To many in the room, Bob Hanson is a courageous hero. The judge says his ruling in 2007 made him even prouder as time went by. “Seven years after the decision, my own son came out to me. I feel very proud.”
The other person who received a standing ovation was sitting next to me, a woman who fought back tears throughout the evening. Becky Cady is the widow of Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark Cady, who wrote the Varnum decision on behalf of the unanimous decision by the Supreme Court. Cady died suddenly while in office in 2019.
It’s worth a quote from Cady’s ruling: “Our responsibility, however, is to protect constitutional rights of individuals from legislative enactments that have denied those rights, even when the rights have not yet been broadly accepted, were at one time unimagined, or challenge a deeply ingrained practice or law viewed to be impervious to the passage of time.”
Why was Becky Cady there? She told me she is “very proud. Proud of seven people who did the right thing. Seven people who followed the constitution that says everyone is treated equally.”
“We can’t ever let up”
While celebratory headlines were on display at the dinner, the headlines of late about Iowa have changed dramatically.
Gov. Kim Reynolds signs “religious freedom” law at private event hosted by Christian group
LGBTQ Iowans says state is worse off than 15 years ago, when same sex marriage legalized
Gender-affirming care ban for kids, trans bathroom bill are now Iowa law
The 15-year anniversary celebration this week was hosted by OneIowa, which fights for rights for Iowa’s LGBTQ+ community. It handed out a flyer that said 95 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced in Iowa’s legislature since 2017, 44 of them in the 2023-2024 session alone. Many of them have been knocked down thanks to intensive lobbying efforts by OneIowa and its supporters.
Of course, the reaction to the 2009 Supreme Court ruling was swift, as conservative Christian organizations mobilized an effort to oust three of the Supreme Court justices who were up for retention in 2010.
The fight against conservative backlash is ongoing. Keenan Crow of OneIowa told the crowd that despite Republican domination of the Iowa Statehouse, many legislators don’t want to pass these anti-gay anti-trans bills. Crow says most legislators don’t really support the bills, but legislative leaders and the governor have become so extreme that they fear bucking the system, so they go along.
Despite 15 years of same-sex marriage rights in Iowa, and now nine years nationwide, retired judge Hanson says, “We can’t ever let up. We can’t take things for granted.”
Chief Justice Cady’s widow Becky told me, “Mark would be very frustrated with the leadership of this state. He took very seriously the constitutional rights of people at the state and federal level.”
Cady says things have changed a lot since 2009. “I’m proud of our state – proud of what was and scared of what will be.”
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I cringe that she signed a bill at a "Christian" event. And I cringe more that they are making this hate and discrimination look like Christian values. They are not. Christ would condemn all of it, and he does. He leaves it to us to correct and let's do that with some door knocking. If your district is great, find a nearby one to visit. I plan to take candy and have some of my own bullet points ready to share with neighbors.
Dave, although this is not about media, some political and social issues are worth branching beyond one’s avowed objective. The Iowa General Assembly in recent years has indeed encroached on areas that government should not touch—mainly family decisions regarding sex and gender.