Jim Obergefell—the man whose name became synonymous with marriage equality in the United States—is sounding the alarm once again. In a powerful interview with Out Magazine, Obergefell warned that the hard-won rights secured by the queer community are in jeopardy under President Donald Trump’s current administration.
He said,
“I always knew I’d be sharing my story for the rest of my life. But now it feels different…Now, I tell my story not just with joy but with fear—fear that this story will be erased, our marriage will be erased, that our right to say ‘I do’ will be erased.”
Obergefell led the landmark 2015 Supreme Court case Obergefell v. Hodges, which legalized same-sex marriage across all 50 states. The case stemmed from his fight to be recognized as the surviving spouse of his late husband, John Arthur, after Ohio refused to list him on Arthur’s death certificate. Now, he warns that the legal protections once secured could be unraveled. He says,
“If we don’t remind people where we’ve been, we’re going to lose it.”
Obergefell, 59, said he’s committed to being a voice for the vulnerable. His fears aren’t unfounded. Trump’s second term has already seen a cascade of anti-LGBTQ policies: bans on transgender athletes, executive orders rolling back protections, and even the shutdown of an LGBTQ+ suicide prevention hotline. Internationally, the hostility isn’t limited to U.S. soil. In the UK, right-wing leader Nigel Farage recently declared same-sex marriage “wrong.” For many in the LGBTQ+ community, Obergefell’s warning feels less like a whisper and more like a wake-up call.
