Same Sex Marriage Debate

Same-Sex Marriage, Civil Unions, and Domestic Partnerships

New York Times

Updated: Feb. 20, 2012

Same-sex marriage became a reality in the United States in 2004 in the wake of a ruling by the Massachusetts Supreme Court that it was required under the equal protection clause of the state’s Constitution.

Prior to 2012, same-sex marriage had also been legalized in New York, Connecticut, Iowa, New Hampshire, Vermont and Washington, D.C. In Washington State, a bill legalizing it was passed in February, but opponents said they would seek to block it and put the question before the voters in a referendum.

In mid-February, the New Jersey Assembly approved a bill legalizing same-sex marriage, setting up a confrontation with Gov. Chris Christie, who vetoed the bill and called on the Legislature to put the issue before voters instead.

Mr. Christie and most state Republican lawmakers want gay marriage put to a popular vote. Democrats say gay marriage is a civil right protected by the Constitution and not subject to referendum.

Also in February, in Maryland a bill legalizing same-sex marriage narrowly passed in the House, delivering a major victory to Gov. Martin O’Malley, a Democrat, who had proposed it. The measure still faces a vote in the Senate, where it is expected to pass, before Mr. O’Malley can sign it into law. But opponents have pledged to put it on the ballot for a vote on Nov. 6, a prospect that the bill’s supporters acknowledge is practically a foregone conclusion.

In California, a court battle continued. The state’s Supreme Court had ruled in May 2008 that a ban on same-sex marriage was discriminatory, and the state began performing them. The ban was restored in a referendum that fall by a ballot measure known as Proposition 8.

The legality of the Proposition 8 ban was upheld by the state’s Supreme Court, but in August 2011, a federal judge ruled that it was unconstitutional. In February 2012, a federal appeals court agreed. The case is expected to be resolved by the Supreme Court. For more on Proposition 8, click here.

In Maine, the Legislature in 2009 passed a bill allowing same-sex marriage, but it was repealed through a referendum before it took effect.

For over a decade, the issue has been a flashpoint in American politics, setting off waves of competing legislation, lawsuits and ballot initiatives to either legalize or ban the practice and causing rifts within religious groups.

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