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Celebrating the Life of Queer Hero Edith Windsor

Celebrating the Life of Queer Hero Edith Windsor

Marriage equality activist Edith Windsor may have passed on, but that doesn’t mean she’ll ever be forgotten. The queer community is currently celebrating all of her achievements following her death this week in Manhattan.

According to New Now Next, Windsor is best known for being the lead plaintiff in United States. v. Windsor, the Supreme Court case that famously struck down the Defense of Marriage Act, giving same-sex couples the right to marry in 2013. This was the first step in a series of rulings that lead to the full marriage equality achieved in 2015.

Rather than looking for power and glory, Windsor was initially just looking for a tax break, since the oppressive 1996 Defense of Marriage Act didn’t allow the same protections and privileges for same-sex couples. She married her wife in Canada, and after her wife’s passing, was left with $350,000 to pay in taxes after inheriting her estate. She was successful in her suite, which was the first in a long series of victories for the queer community.

Now Windsor has passed on, but her legacy remains. LGBTQ marriage is now legal in the U.S., and there is much more awareness around the equality issues that queer couples face. There are memorials and statements coming from around the country and the world celebrating her achievements. Although Windsor has passed, her legacy, and all the good that came from it, will live on.

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