Wh a cisn expected soon om Massachetts judg that may legalize same-sex marriage, the possibily of legal stat for gay marriage other stat and the recent Supreme Court cisn on sodomy, Print Bh appears ready to tap growg sentiment agast gay marriage as a polil issue.
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GAY MARRIAGE AN INFLUENTIAL ISSUE 2004
Gay marriage (search) is emergg as a big enough issue several stat to fluence rac both for Congrs and the princy. * gay marriage 2004 *
SOURCE: “WHY MARRIAGE MATTERS: AMERICA, EQUALITY, AND GAY PEOPLE’S RIGHT TO MARRY, ” BY EVAN WOLFSON (2004). Early Years: Same-Sex Marriage Bans In 1970, jt one year after the historic Stonewall Rts that galvanized the gay rights movement, law stunt Richard Baker and librarian Jam McConnell applied for a marriage license Mnota.Clerk Gerald Nelson rejected their applitn bee they were a same-sex uple, and a trial urt upheld his cisn. Supreme Court 1972 cled to hear the se “for want of a substantial feral qutn.” This lg effectively blocked feral urts om lg on same-sex marriage for s, leavg the cisn solely the hands of stat, which alt blow after blow to those hopg to see gay marriage beg legal.In 1973, for stance, Maryland beme the first state to create a law that explicly f marriage as a unn between a man and woman, a belief held by many nservative relig groups.
Though the gay rights movement saw some advancements the 1970s and 1980s—such as Harvey Milk beg the first openly gay man elected to public office the untry 1977—the fight for gay marriage ma ltle headway for many years.Marriage Equaly: Turng the Ti In the late 1980s and early 1990s, same-sex upl saw the first signs of hope on the marriage ont a long time.
GAY MARRIAGE PLAY AS 2004 ISSUE
* gay marriage 2004 *
In 1989, the San Francis Board of Supervisors passed an ordance that allowed homosexual upl and unmarried heterosexual upl to register for domtic partnerships, which granted hospal visatn rights and other benefs.Three years later, the District of Columbia siarly passed a new law that allowed same-sex upl to register as domtic partners. Ernment.Then, 1993, the hight urt Hawaii led that a ban on same-sex marriage may vlate that state nstutn’s Equal Protectn Clse—the first time a state urt has ever ched toward makg gay marriage legal.The Hawaii Supreme Court sent the se—brought by a gay male uple and two lbian upl who were nied marriage licens 1990—back for further review to the lower First Circu Court, which 1991 origally dismissed the su.As the state tried to prove that there was “pellg state tert” jtifyg the ban, the se would be tied up ligatn for the next three years.The Defense of Marriage Act Opponents of gay marriage, however, did not s on their hnch. Congrs 1996 passed the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which Print Bill Clton signed to law.DOMA didn’t ban gay marriage outright but specified that only heterosexual upl uld be granted feral marriage benefs.
That is, even if a state ma gay marriage legal, same-sex upl still wouldn’t be able to file e tax jotly, sponsor spo for immigratn benefs or receive spoal Social Secury payments, among many other thgs.The act was a huge setback for the marriage equaly movement, but transient good news arose three months later: Hawaii Judge Kev S.
In 1998, voters approved a nstutnal amendment banng same-sex marriage the state.Phg for Change: Civil Unns The next saw a whirlwd of activy on the gay marriage ont, begng wh the year 2000 when Vermont beme the first state to legalize civil unns, a legal stat that provis most of the state-level benefs of marriage.Three years later, Massachetts beme the first state to legalize gay marriage when the Massachetts Supreme Court led that same-sex upl had the right to marry Goodridge v. The state fally troduced the untry to gay marriage (m the feral benefs) when began issug same-sex marriage licens on May 17, 2004.Later that year, the U.S.
Six months after gay and lbian upl won the right to marry Massachetts, opponents of same-sex marriage stck back Tuday, wh voters 11 stat approvg nstutnal amendments difyg marriage as an exclively heterosexual stutn. * gay marriage 2004 *
Bh—that would outlaw gay marriage across the untry.2004 was notable for upl many other stat as well, though for the oppose reason: Ten typilly nservative stat, along wh Oregon, enacted state-level bans on gay marriage. Kansas and Texas were next 2005, and 2006 saw seven more stat passg Constutnal amendments agast gay marriage.But towards the end of the , gay marriage beme legal var stat, cludg Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont (the first state to approve by legislative means) and New Hampshire.Domtic Partnerships Throughout the and the begng of the next, California equently ma headl for seawg on the gay marriage issue.The state was the first to pass a domtic partnership statute 1999, and legislators tried to pass a same-sex marriage bill 2005 and 2007.