Jim Obergefell | 2024 Pitzer College Commencement Keynote | May 11, 2024

Commencement Keynote Speaker Jim Obergefell was the plaintiff in a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide. A self-described “accidental activist” from Ohio, Obergefell and his partner John plunged into legal controversy in 2013. When the couple, who were legally married in Maryland, learned that Obergefell wouldn’t be recognized on the death certificate of John, who had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), because of Ohio’s same-sex marriage ban, they decided to challenge the ban in court. Though John didn’t live to see the final decision, the case eventually went to the nation’s highest court, which ruled in favor of marriage equality in Obergefell v. Hodges in 2015. Since then, Obergefell has been involved in numerous efforts to promote civil rights for all. With the overturning of the abortion rights case Roe v. Wade and with ongoing challenges to marriage equality in several states, Obergefell continues to sound a warning that the fight for privacy rights is far from over.