Where Same-Sex Marriage Stands in the 50 States

[struggle4progress]

By Elizabeth Chuck

... On Monday, Oregon became the 18th state to allow same-sex marriages. On Tuesday, Pennsylvania became the 19th. The next day, plaintiffs in Montana filed the first challenge to the ban on gay marriage there, and the day after that, the same thing happened in South Dakota — leaving North Dakota as the lone state with a ban that hasn't been challenged ...

Besides Oregon and Pennsylvania, these states allow gay marriage: California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Iowa, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington.

Three other states allow civil unions or domestic partnerships for same-sex couples: Colorado, Nevada and Wisconsin.

The trend toward gay marriage has picked up steam. Half of the states where same-sex couples can legally marry passed their laws in 2013 ...

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/where-same-sex-marriage-stands-50-states-n109966

[Initech]

1. This is HUGE progress from where it was at this point 10 years ago.

People are starting to see the ugliness in bigotry and what it really does. Glad the turnaround is finally happening!

[justiceischeap]

3. Hell, it's huge progress from 3 years ago... :)

That Supreme Court ruling really has helped.

[dsc]

2. So far our permanent victories have been confined to three regions with one exception

The north east, including Maryland has over half our states (ME, NH, VT, MA, RI, CT, NJ, NY, PA, DE, and MD). The pacific coast has four (HI, CA, WA, OR) and the upper Midwest three (MN, IA, IL) leaving only NM. It is a great victory but we have a long way to go or at least we have to go to SCOTUS.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

7. 4th Circuit -- MD, VA, WV, NC and SC -- the march is on.

....

The three judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit were named Tuesday morning, just before arguments were set to begin. They are: Paul V. Niemeyer, nominated to the court in 1990 by President George H.W. Bush; Roger L. Gregory, a recess appointment by President Clinton in 2000 who was subsequently nominated by President George W. Bush; and Henry F. Floyd, nominated as a district judge by George W. Bush in 2003 and named to the appeals court by President Obama in 2011.

....

http://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-same-sex-marriage-virginia-federal-appeals-court-20140513-story.html

....

Five lawyers took turns on the podium, but the focus was on the veteran judicial panel. The opposing viewpoints of two of the jurists suggested that the third, independent-minded Circuit Judge Henry F. Floyd, might hold the deciding vote.

A former Democratic state legislator from South Carolina, Floyd has shown a bipartisan appeal. He was nominated to the federal bench by President George W. Bush and elevated to the 4th Circuit by President Obama. He is said to be a friend of both Democratic Rep. James E. Clyburn (S.C.) and the state’s Republican senior senator, Lindsey O. Graham.

....

Circuit Judge Roger L. Gregory was firmly on the other side. He continually compared the case to Loving v. Virginia, the 1967 case in which the Supreme Court struck down the state’s ban on interracial marriage.

....

Niemeyer said that the vision of marriage the justices found fundamental was the “union of a husband and wife.” The state has an interest in marriage, he said, because of the capability of heterosexual couples to produce children, something same-sex couples cannot do on their own.

....

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/appeals-court-to-hear-arguments-on-virginia-ban-on-gay-marriage/2014/05/12/38b64ada-da13-11e3-8009-71de85b9c527_story.html

Decision by the end of the summer. And when the ban is struck down in NC, I'm going to throw a party. For the right reasons -- EQUALITY -- but also as a major FU to Tami "Values" Fitzgerald.

http://www.glaad.org/cap/north-carolina-tami-fitzgerald

[WorseBeforeBetter]

4. "When am I going to have a forever family?"

"The ruling brought validity to [Jay's] forever family, that we as a society recognize his family is important and that we're taking on the responsibility to raise this child that didn't get the right start at life and we're making sure that he has every opportunity to grow and be a wonderful, healthy person," the 35-year-old West said, choking up.

You're not the only one choking up, Mr. West... congrats to you and your forever family!

[Swede Atlanta]

5. As good as this news is we need to stop the presses.....

As a gay man I could care less about marriage equality.

Why? Because in a majority of states you can be fired from your job because you are gay, you can be denied housing or evicted from your apartment for being gay.

The people who are pushing for marriage equality seem to take safety in their jobs and homes for granted. The same is not the case for millions of gay Americans.

So let's get the priorities right... the first thing that needs to be done is to protect LGBT persons in their jobs and homes from discrimination. Then and only then should we spend one dollar or one moment talking about marriage.

I do want to see marriage equality but our priorities are misdirected. One should be secure in themselves in terms of their jobs and homes before we look at marriage.

Sorry to to be a party-pooper but I am not contributing to any efforts at marriage equality until the LGBT community focuses on what is really important.

[druidity33]

9. But it's a legal wedge...

Once you say you have to be treated equally, it's not far from you can't be discriminated against.



Pick the battles you can win first, marshall your forces, then surge towards your next best goal (choosing your time carefully of course).

Sorry, currently reading a fantasy fiction novel with heraldric world warring factions. Game of Thrones 90's style...

[shenmue]

6. Yay!

Whee! 19 out of 50 states. Six more and we're at the halfway mark!

[sheshe2]

8. KnR~