It’s a historic day for love and marriage! On June 26th, the United States Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage in all 50 states. The ruling strikes down any remaining prohibitions and recognizes marriages that were performed in other jurisdictions.

“This ruling is a victory for America,” President Barack Obama said in a televised statement. “This decision affirms what millions of Americans already believe in their hearts. When all Americans are treated as equal, we are all more free.”

“This ruling is a victory for America.” —@POTUS on today’s Supreme Court decision on marriage equality #LoveWins http://t.co/rG8PID2QIU

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 26, 2015

Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote for the majority opinion: 

“No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice, and family. In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than once they were. As some of the petitioners in these cases demonstrate, marriage embodies a love that may endure even past death. It would misunderstand these men and women to say they disrespect the idea of marriage. Their plea is that they do respect it, respect it so deeply that they seek to find its fulfillment for themselves. Their hope is not to be condemned to live in loneliness, excluded from one of civilization’s oldest institutions. They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right.”

In 2004, Massachusetts was the first state to legalize gay marriage; currently, same-sex couples are currently able to wed in 37 states and the District of Columbia. The remaining 14 states must now stop enforcing their bans.

Congrats to all of the gay and lesbian couples across the U.S. who now have the right to marry, as well as all those who worked hard for this victory!

— Stefania Sainato