It’s, oh, 60 years from now. Sandra Brown, the granddaughter of Brian Brown, is in the living room. Her son, Brant, approaches with a question she’s dreaded.
“Mom,” he says, “what was my great-grandpa like?”
“Well,” says Sandra, rubbing her chin. “He was a handsome man.”
“Oh. What else.”
“He was very well-spoken. And when he believed in something, he took a stand.”
“What do you mean?”
A deep sigh.
“Well, back when he was in his late 30s and early 40s America didn’t allow two men or two women to get married. And great-grandpa was one of the people who led that fight.”
A bewildered look. “I don’t understand.”
“It’s complicated. See, he was in charge of a group called the National Organization for Marriage. They were pretty big and powerful, and your great-grandpa was in charge of the whole thing!”
“Wow! He must have been very smart!”
“Yeah … um, so, he thought being married meant you had to be a woman in love with a man, or a man in love with a woman. He was really concerned about what would happen if men could marry men or women could marry women …”
“That’s weird.”
“I know … I know. It seems really weird. But back then, it was a big fight in America. Then, on June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court—which is really important—made it law than women can marry women, men can marry men. That marriage is, first and foremost, about the love between two people.”
“Just like you love Mommy?”
“Exactly. Just like I love Mommy.”
