As I hope most of you already know, the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of same-sex marriage on June 26. This resulted in the legalization of same-sex marriage in all 50 states. This was a day in history that not only made my highlight reel for the summer, but the entire year.

Upon the news of the Supreme Court’s vote, the excitement that swept through the entire country was a historical breakthrough that we were lucky to have been able to live through.

I was fortunate enough to grow up in a very open minded and accepting home, so to no surprise, equality has always been something that I’ve firmly believed in. When my older brother, Joseph Halpin ‘13, came out about being gay, it brought this issue much closer to home. The idea that he, or anyone else, should not have equal legal rights due to something they cannot control is a completely foreign idea to my mind.

In my eyes it is a no brainer that everyone deserves equal rights despite differences in gender, race, sexuality or any other area that we as humans are born with. I am now happy to see that the law of the land is finally on the same page.

According to the Human Rights Campaign, over 10,000 teens between the ages of 13 and 17 identify themselves as a member of the LGBT (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender) community. Of those 10,000 teens, 42 percent of them say they feel they live in a community that is not accepting of LGBT people.

The legalization of same-sex marriage is a huge step in the right direction in breaking down barriers for the LGBT community. With this victory I hope that current generations and the generations to come will be more accepting and supportive to all who are LGBT.