The national and state ACLU have filed lawsuits in federal district court in Greensboro, asking a judge to block the state's marriage amendment.
The ACLU has asked for a preliminary injunction to prevent Amendment One from remaining in effect for one of the families in a pre-existing lawsuit seeking to overturn the state's ban on same-sex marriage. It's also filing a separate lawsuit on behalf of three other same-sex couples in the state. Chris Brook is the legal director of the ACLU of North Carolina.
"These are families that need to have amendment one's burden removed, not months from now, not years from now, but really today," says Brook.
One couple named in the pre-existing lawsuit has a son with serious health issues who would benefit from a supplemental medical policy. Couples in the other suit face similar medical issues.