"Obergefell v. Hodges" by Justice Anthony M. Kennedy Applying these established tenets, the Court has long held the right to marry is protected by the Constitution. In Loving v. Virginia, which invalidated bans on interracial unions, a unanimous Court held marriage is "one of the vital personal rights essential to the orderly pursuit of happiness by free men." The Court reaffirmed that holding in Zablocki v. Redhail, which held the right to marry was burdened by a law prohibiting fathers who were behind on child support from marrying. The Court again applied this principle in Turner v. Safley, which held the right to marry was abridged by regulations limiting the privilege of prison inmates to marry. Over time and in other contexts, the Court has reiterated that the right to marry is fundamental under the Due Process Clause. It cannot be denied that this Court's cases describing the right to marry presumed a relationship involving opposite-sex partners. The Court, like many institutions, has made assumptions defined by the world and time of which it is a part. This was evident in Baker v. Nelson, a one-line summary decision issued in 1972, holding the exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage did not present a substantial federal question. Obergefell v. Hodges, 576 U.S. ___ (2015) Question Use the excerpt from the Supreme Court majority opinion in Obergefell v. Hodges, written by Justice Kennedy, to answer the question. What does Justice Kennedy suggest in the second paragraph? (1 point) Responses There is insufficient evidence to support legal reasoning based on stare decisis. There is insufficient evidence to support legal reasoning based on stare decisis . There is a unifying legal opinion that binds the nine Supreme Court justices. There is a unifying legal opinion that binds the nine Supreme Court justices. The principle of stare decisis may be used in most legal opinions. The principle of stare decisis may be used in most legal opinions. The changing social climate may reverse earlier Court assumptions. The changing social climate may reverse earlier Court assumptions.

Answer 1

In the second paragraph of Justice Kennedy's opinion in "Obergefell v. Hodges," he suggests that the Court's earlier decisions regarding the right to marry have historically rested on assumptions reflective of the societal norms of their respective times, specifically regarding marriage being limited to opposite-sex partners. He acknowledges that past rulings, such as Baker v. Nelson, were based on these outdated assumptions, implying that the changing social climate has the potential to challenge and reverse these earlier Court assumptions. Therefore, the correct response is:

The changing social climate may reverse earlier Court assumptions.