Dignity Disputed

Abstract Obergefell v. Hodges , the 2015 Supreme Court decision establishing a constitutional right for same-sex couples to marry, marked first time in Court’s history that justices explicitly disagreed over meaning and requirements of human dignity. In his dissenting opinion Clarence Thomas sought reclaim rather than simply reject language dignity, advancing conception dignity differed sharply from embraced by majority. Using this disagreement as point departure, article demonstrates how has served an extra-textual value underpins divergent visions American constitutionalism that, turn, inform interpretations Constitution’s text history.