Our wedding was about much, much more than a certificate and a platinum band. It was about two people and two families coming together to celebrate as one. For most of my life as a gay man, I thought I would never have the opportunity to get married, and so I wrote the whole wedding thing off as some silly ritual. Yet given the window of opportunity in 2008 to say “I do,” I did—with the enthusiasm of the fiercest Bridezilla.

Newsweek & The Daily Beast editor David Jefferson writes on his four gay marriages—and the significance of his one wedding, a human rite of passage.

Big ups to Storify for sticking our curation of top tweets following the Prop 8 announcement right there on their homepage.

From Lt. Dan Choi to Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, we used Storify to curate the best tweets as Prop 8 was ruled unconstitutional. See any we’ve missed!? Please do shoot us a message with the recommendation.

ruthoutspoken:

Here’s the breakdown of what you need to know:

Today’s ruling: The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in a 2-1 vote that Prop 8 is not constitutional. This affirms Judge Vaughn Walker’s earlier ruling that Prop. 8 violated the U.S. Constitution by denying rights to a certain group of people.

“Although the Constitution permits communities to enact most laws they believe to be desirable, it requires that there be at least a legitimate reason for the passage of a law that treats different classes of people differently,” the justices wrote in the decision. “There is no such reason that Prop 8 could have been enacted.”

What’s next: Expect an appeal from the opposition shortly. The case will either go to the full 9th Circuit (only 3 ruled Tuesday), or it will head directly to the Supreme Court on appeal. The Supreme Court would look at the case, at the earliest, next term, if they even decide to take the case. 

Does this mean same-sex can now marry in California: No. A stay is likely to be put on marriages. In addition, an appeal would prevent marriage from occurring. 

Help ‘splainer, thanks ruthoutspoken.

Well, that was so cute it was gross. Grover asks: “What Is Marriage?”

One complication of the voting process was wrong-way voting. Many people were confused by what a vote for “yes” or “no” meant—voting “yes” supported passing the proposition, and thereby a ban on same-sex marriage, while voting “no” was a vote to strike down the measure and allow gay couples to marry.

The Gaggle, on whether Prop. 8 voters knew what they were voting for. A federal judge in California just ruled Prop 8 unconstitutional.