As many of you have likely heard, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled earlier today, overturning a proposed ban against benefits for homosexual couples, and strongly implying that banning homosexual marriage is unconstitutional. A number of companies have stood up to applaud the decision – including Apple, who provided a strong statement in support of the decision to AllThingsD.
AllThingsD reports:
In a pair of 5-4 decisions, the Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled in favor of same-sex couples in two major cases, effectively allowing federal benefits for gay couples and clearing the way for same-sex marriages in the state of California.
One ruling overturned the Defense of Marriage Act, or DOMA, the bill passed in 1996 that ruled same-sex marriages unconstitutional. The other decision left intact a lower-court ruling that invalidated California’s Prop. 8 ban on same-sex marriage.
Among progressive Silicon Valley tech companies, the reaction was incredibly positive.
“Apple strongly supports marriage equality and we consider it a civil rights issue. We applaud the Supreme Court for its decisions today,” an Apple spokesman toldAllThingsD in a statement.
It’s not the first time Apple has publicly spoke out in defense of same-sex marriage and equal rights for homosexual couples – they also made their position clear in a Supreme Court filing back in February, addressing same-sex marriage as a matter of civil rights, in addition to noting the benefits that legalized same-sex marriage would likely have to the corporate world.
