Equal protection of the law is an essential constitutional right.  All people, regardless of sexual orientation, must be guaranteed the fundamental freedom of reproductive and sexual self-determination.

In Griswold v. Connecticut, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a state law that criminalized the use of birth control by married couples, citing the constitutional right to privacy.  The court’s decision in this case became the basis for later decisions recognizing privacy rights, including Eisenstadt v. Baird, in which the court invalidated a law prohibiting the distribution of contraceptives to unmarried couples, and Roe v. Wade, in which the court recognized the right of a woman to make certain fundamental decisions affecting her destiny, including the right to choose to terminate a pregnancy.  The Supreme Court reaffirmed these constitutional protections most recently in Lawrence v. Texas, striking down the Texas law making it a crime for individuals of the same sex to engage in certain intimate sexual contact.   In reaching its decision in Lawrence, the court relied on Griswold, Eisenstadt, and Roe itself in reaffirming that the Constitution protects individual’s decisions about marriage, having and raising children, and basic family relationships.  These cases form a seamless web that underscores an individual’s right to freedom from government interference in the most personal, private decisions. 

Choice is the essence of freedom, the affirmation that every individual has the right to make personal, private decisions to determine the course of his/her life.  The freedom to marry, the freedom to love, the freedom to decide when, whether, and with whom to start a family, are fundamental freedoms, central to the pursuit of life, liberty, and happiness.