The United States has recognized marriage as a fundamental human right in many court cases including Loving v Virginia. By protecting marriage between a black-Cherokee woman and a white man, the case also helped support the legalization of same-sex marriage in all 50 states. This is important because it creates a more united America by breaking down the social constraints that prevented the 5-10% of Americans who identify as homosexuals from marrying. In the same way that blacks were not allowed to vote, gay couples were not allowed to marry. The legalization of same-sex marriage is helping to bridge the rift in the American social order by not outlawing same-sex couples as “immoral” and by implying that couples are less deserving of marriage than a heterosexual relationship. The shift in expanding the 14th Amendment's meaning of equal protection of rights for all citizens, in this case for marriage, is helping people treat each other as equals and allowing the country to take another step toward freedom and justice for