June 26, 2015 was a historic day in the United States, as the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that the constitution guarantees the right to same-sex marriage.

Before today, 36 of our 50 states allowed gay marriage, which covered 70 percent of all Americans.

This is probably the most quoted part of today’s decision, “No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice, and family,” he wrote. “In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than once they were. 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.”

Same-sex marriage has long been a controversial topic in the United States, even President Obama, who spoke today praising the decision, was quoted in 2004 as saying, “marriage is something sanctified between a man and a woman.”

Below is a 2 minute segment from President Obama’s speech today. Watch it and see if you can answer the questions below.

Answer the questions in comments and we will respond.

1. _ ___ __, they’ve reaffirmed that all Americans are entitled to the equal protection of the law.

2. The statement above addresses the constitutional reasons for this decision. What does it mean?

3. Why do you think he called our current system a “patchwork system?”

4. What uncertainty does this remove for same-sex couples?

5. How does Obama think this decision will affect marriage?

6. Do you think this change in U.S. law will have an effect in other countries?