As of 2015, 36 states in the U.S allow gay marriage. Some of those states arrived at this way of thinking by court decision, some by state legislation and still fewer by way of a popular vote. Now, the U.S. Supreme Court has decided to take the constitutional legality of gay marriage bans into consideration. The decision is set to be argued in April — most likely to be decided in June — so while the decision won’t be made for several months, keeping the matter in mind as the judicial process takes its course is still of the utmost importance.

The federal ban on gay marriage, which was struck down in 2013, created the opportunity for lower courts to overturn gay marriage bans at the state level, which they did in mass. At the time of the 2013 removal of the federal ban, only 12 states — Iowa being one of them — had struck down the bans on their own. Since then, 24 more states have followed suit — 22 of them through lower court decisions — and extended the right to marry.

This decision stands to be either a significant gain or a monumental setback for American civil liberties. Should the appeal against same-sex marriage bans be upheld, state court decisions could be reversed and possibly return us to the original 12, if not fewer. However, should the bans be struck down — as has been the national trend — then the remaining 14 states maintaining their opposition to marriage equality would find themselves with even less ground to stand on.

In Alabama, for example, a federal court has ruled the ban on same-sex marriages to be unconstitutional. However, the state’s attorney general, Luther Strange, has appealed the ruling and won a 14-day delay on the new law. The appellate court, which will hear Alabama’s appeal has already struck down a similar request from the state of Florida, but Strange believes Alabama’s request should be approved because of the upcoming Supreme Court decision.

“… We know that the Supreme Court will tell us, within six months, whether states must recognize same-sex marriages … If the Constitution requires same-sex marriage, the stay will be a very short one,” Strange said in an interview with al.com.

Six months. Six month is all the state of Alabama is asking. Basically, you waited this long, what’s another half year?

Six months on top of a lifetime of inequality. Six months until you can have the rights that have already been granted to millions of other Americans. Six months until you get to have the same rights.

Alabama wants to be exempt from enforcing a court decision for as long as possible, but the play to stall for time can be seen as a clear act of desperation — the delaying of the inevitable.

Should Alabama’s appeal be struck down, the decision will hopefully be echoed across the entire nation when the Supreme Court releases its decision in June. Granting the right to marry to a wider population of Americans, as discussed in a previous editorial from this board, will do nothing to harm the legal institution of marriage, only the religious institution of marriage.

The latter of the two should have no bearing on U.S. law, as we have no official religion and therefore religious sentiment should not carry weight in legal matters.

Those who would be allowed to marry under what will hopefully become the law of the land are not asking to be granted more rights than any other Americans or to be singled out. They are not asking to be treated differently or in higher regard than any other Americans. They are simply asking to be treated the exact same as their fellow Americans.

In this case, the best reparations for decades of intolerance based in ignorance and fear is easy enough — simply see to it that justice is served.