After years of waiting, the Proposition 8 and DOMA cases will be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday and Wednesday. Each of these cases deals with the violation of the equal protection clause, and each has faced numerous court challenges since their passage.

Proposition 8 stripped same-sex couples of their right to marry during the 2008 election, and after having been found unconstitutional by both federal and district courts, the case now will be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Similarly, DOMA has been ruled unconstitutional by several lower courts on the grounds of equal protection and will be heard by the Supreme Court on Wednesday.

While the Supreme Court will be hearing oral arguments from both sides in the Proposition 8 and DOMA cases this week, the justices most likely will announce their ruling by June. Should the Supreme Court find Proposition 8 unconstitutional, like the U.S. District Court’s original ruling that was later reaffirmed by the Ninth Circuit Court, California’s same-sex marriage ban will be reversed and all loving couples in the state will once again be able to commit themselves in marriage.

If the Supreme Court rules to overturn DOMA, the federal government then will recognize legal marriages between same-sex couples in states with marriage equality by granting these marriages the same 1,138 rights and benefits afforded to marriages between one man and one woman.

The Santa Barbara Equality Project at the Pacific Pride Foundation joins other organizations across California and the United States in commemorating this historic occasion by holding a community gathering in support of marriage equality.

The Equality Project will be holding a rally for marriage equality at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Santa Barbara County Courthouse and encourages supportive community members to attend and show their support as the Supreme Court hears this historic case. Mayor Helene Schneider, Rep. Lois Capps, state Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson and Second District county Supervisor Janet Wolf are among the local elected officials invited and expected to attend the rally.

— Lauren Gunther is the equality project coordinator for the Pacific Pride Foundation.