Interracial marriage now protected by law in New Jersey

Gov. Phil Murphy signed a law Tuesday protecting people’s right to marry anyone of any race, a move meant to codify a long-established — but until now not explicitly protected in New Jersey — right in the wake of a string of conservative U.S. Supreme Court rulings.

The law comes just over a year after the nation’s top court overturned abortion rights, a ruling that exposed the vulnerability of long-settled law on matters like reproduction and marriage that historically have been seen as private.

Murphy’s action means interracial marriages will be protected by law in New Jersey even if the court’s conservative majority acts to overturn its 1967 landmark precedent, Loving v. Virginia, which prohibited states from outlawing marriages outside one’s race.

Murphy said enshrining New Jersey residents’ right to marry anyone of any race became necessary because the nation “faces an era of uncertainty regarding the basic principles of equality and personal freedom.”

“In New Jersey, we will continue to stand on the right side of history, ensuring that people have the freedom to marry the person they love,” Murphy said.

The new law, which also applies to civil unions, comes nearly two years after Murphy signed a bill that codified same-sex marriage rights.