A victory for gays!!

The Alaska Supreme Court has sided with the gay and lesbian couples who sued to obtain the benefits enjoyed by heterosexual couples when they get married, overturning a lower court ruling that had let the current discrimination in place:

Gay rights advocates claimed a major victory after the state Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional to deny benefits to same-sex partners of public employees.

In overturning a lower court ruling, the state high court said Friday that barring benefits for state and city employees' same-sex partners violates the Alaska constitution's equal protection clause.

And this wasn't just a fluke. It was a unanimous decision that sets the stage for Alaska to join 11 other states that already have laws, policies or union contracts providing employee benefits in all eligible same-sex unions. Furthermore, other courts in the country could now be looking to the state of Alaska on how it handled the equal protection rationale.

The city of Anchorage, the defendant, will not appeal the decision, but the Republican Governor was outraged by the decision (GET OUT!!) and is already looking at ways to undo it.

The best part of the ruling was the reasoning behind the overturning itself:

In the 2001 Superior Court ruling overturned Friday, Judge Stephanie Joannides said the state and city did not have to extend benefits to same-sex couples, equating them with unmarried heterosexual couples who also are not eligible.

The high court said that comparison failed to acknowledge the fact that heterosexual couples can choose to get married, while homosexual couples cannot.