Washington - The Midwestern state of Iowa became the third US state to allow same-sex marriage after its Supreme Court ruled Friday that a 1998 law violated the state's constitution.
The 1998 law limited marriage to a union between a man and a woman. But following the court's ruling, Iowa now joins the states of Massachusetts and Connecticut to allow same-sex marriage.
'We are firmly convinced the exclusion of gay and lesbian people from the institution of civil marriage does not substantially further any important governmental objective,' the court said.
'The legislature has excluded a historically disfavoured class of persons from a supremely important civil institution without a constitutionally sufficient justification.'
In 2005, Lambda Legal filed a lawsuit on behalf of six same-sex couples who were denied marriage licenses in Iowa, and on behalf of three of their children. The national gay rights group's lawyers argued that denying marriage to same-sex couples violated the guarantees of liberty and equality in the state's constitution.
'The ruling is legally compelling and consistent with the most basic of Iowa values - fairness, strong communities and protection for families,' said Lambda Legal attorney Ken Upton in a statement.
'This decision, which is the first in the politically and socially moderate Midwest, will have a very strong impact on the fight for equal rights for gays, lesbians and other groups labeled by their sexual orientation,' the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa said.
The long-simmering issue of same-sex marriage is both politically and morally charged in the US. In last November's elections, California, Arizona and Florida passed gay marriage bans. In Arkansas, voters passed a law depriving gays of the right to adopt children.
USA
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