Same sex marriage is a big issue in the GLBT community, and many gay marriage activists have tirelessly fought to help see legal gay marriage become a reality in America. Thanks to these efforts gay marriage is now legal in seven jurisdictions.
As of 2012, gay men and lesbians could marry their same sex partners in:
- New York
- Massachusetts
- Connecticut
- Iowa
- Vermont
- New Hampshire
- Washington
- Washington, D.C.
A few states recognize marriages of same sex couples that are legally performed in other places.
California briefly allowed gay marriage in 2008 until something called Prop 8 stripped same sex couples of this right. Prop 8 was repealed in 2010, and in February 2012, it was found unconstitutional. But the law is currently in limbo and no marriages have been performed since 2008.
In 2009, a law that had recently passed allowing gay marriage in Maine, was repealed after the November election.
In 2011, Maryland moved one step closer to legalizing same sex marriage when a measure to do so passed the state Senate and the Maryland House of Representatives, and the Governor said that he would sign the bill into law. Unfortunately, the bill was killed by the House and wasn't voted on during the 2011 legislative session.
Despite some of these defeats, the passage of gay marriage in New York, in June, 2011, has been seen as a pivotal event. New York is America's third-most populous state and same sex marriage was passed in that state by the elected legislature and not through the courts. It was also voted for by Republican senators.
As the Human Rights Campaign explained:
"The achievement of marriage equality in New York is thanks to four primary factors: the bold and strategic leadership of an immensely popular governor, Andrew Cuomo; the most aggressive state legislative advocacy campaign ever in gay rights history; courageous Republicans wanting to be on the right side of history; and public opinion shifting in favor of marriage equality."
Since gay marriage passed in New York, Washington legalized same sex marriage, California declared Prop 8 unconstitutional and there is hope that states like Oregon, Maryland and Minnesota will follow suit.
