The money quote of this piece: ” Framing an issue—any issue—in terms of states’ rights obscures the fact that a bedrock purpose of any decent political system is to protect the rights of individuals, and to soften the sharp edges of popular democracy by curbing laws and policies that seek to punish marginal groups just because they’re perceived as weird and different. States’ rights are a double-edged sword, but civil rights cut only one way.”

More here.