The US Supreme Court struck down a state constitutional amendment that had the effect of removing gay men and lesbian women from the protection of anti-discrimination laws. Although the state argued that the amendment was a ‘reasonable effort to preserve traditional American moral values’, the Court concluded that ‘If the constitutional conception of “equal protection of the laws” means anything, it must at the very least mean that a bare […] desire to harm a politically unpopular group cannot constitute a legitimate government interest.’
Romer v Evans, 517 U.S. 620 (1996)
Judgment of the US Supreme Court striking down a state constitutional amendment that had the effect of removing gay men and lesbian women from the protection of anti-discrimination laws.