The United States Senate approves a bill to shield gay marriage

Biden defends that the bill will allow the next generations to "lead full and happy lives"

The United States Senate has approved this Tuesday a law to protect marriage between people of the same sex and that shields the legal precedent approved by the Supreme Court in 2015, all this after said judicial body revoked the right to abortion last month of June.

With 61 votes in favor and 36 against, the bill has been supported by all members of the Democratic bench and by 12 Republicans, who had already been in favor of supporting the voting procedure, according to 'The Hill' .

The so-called Respect Marriage Act must now pass the scrutiny of the House of Representatives before being sent to the President of the United States, Joe Biden, and becomes law. The bill is expected to pass the lower house before the end of the year.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has congratulated the Republican senators who have supported the measure for their "outstanding and tireless work on this historic legislation," CNN reported.

"For millions and millions of Americans, today is a very good day (...) An important day. A day that has been a long time coming," Schumer said in a speech in the Upper House.

The bill would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, which passed overwhelmingly in 1996 and defined marriage as only between a man and a woman. Several states still have laws prohibiting same-sex marriage.

The president of the United States, Joe Biden, has praised the approval of the bill by the Senate, assuring that the country "is about to" reaffirm "a fundamental truth."

"Love is love, and Americans should have the right to marry the person they love. For millions of Americans, this legislation will safeguard the rights and protections to which LGBTQI and interracial couples and their children are entitled," the president said. president of the United States, according to a statement released by the White House.

According to Biden, the bill will ensure that the next generations grow up knowing that "they too can lead full and happy lives and raise families of their own."

Meanwhile, the US president has stressed that the approval is "a bipartisan achievement", thanking the Republican senators who, together with the Democrats, support the right of the LGBT community to marry.

"I look forward to welcoming you to the White House after the House passes this legislation and sends it to my desk, where I will quickly and proudly sign it into law," Biden added.

However, the 'number two' of the president, the vice president of the United States Kamala Harris, has also thanked the bipartisan group of senators for their support for the bill.

"I was honored to celebrate some of our nation's first same-sex marriages at San Francisco City Hall in 2004, where couples celebrated not only a joyous union, but the protection and respect of fundamental Human Rights" , Harris has maintained in a letter.

"Our Administration upholds the fundamental right to marry the one you love and to live without discrimination. The Respect Marriage Act ultimately upholds a simple principle: All Americans are equal and should be treated that way by their government. Today we are in a step closer to reaching that ideal with pride," he added.