Nicole MacDowell
Staff Writer
On June 26, 2013, the United States Supreme Court overturned the Defense Of Marriage Act (DOMA), an act which banned the federal recognition of same-sex marriages. Since the repeal of DOMA, the United States has gone from 9 states–Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Vermont, Maine, Maryland and Washington, plus the District of Columbia–with legalized same-sex marriages to nineteen states.
California was the first state post-DOMA to legally recognize same-sex marriages with the repeal of Proposition 8 (Prop 8). Prop 8 was put in place in November 2008 to take away the ability for same-sex couples to be married. It came into existence a few months after California legally recognized same-sex unions.
After California dropped Prop 8, other states held their own courts to revise and remove all marriage statutes and constitutional amendments to allow for the recognition and full marital rights of same-sex couples. As of July 27th, the ten additional states to the above are: California, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Hawai’i, Illinois, Minnesota, and Rhode Island.
Of the remaining 31 states that still have State bans on same-sex marriage, 2 states–Nevada and Wisconsin–allow domestic partnerships with limited marital rights. Oregon also allows domestic partnerships, while Colorado does not allow for same-sex marriages but allows civil unions.
In one year, the United States has more than doubled the number of states that legally recognize same-sex marriages. The United States federally recognizes all same-sex married couples as such: married couples. But while we have made great strides, we still have a long way to go. Same-sex couples are gaining their rights in more and more states, but there are still more bans in place than there are allowances.
I encourage you all to go out and speak up for the rights of same-sex couples. The more people talk, the more likely something is going to change. We as people have the power to change the world that we live in for the better. Speak out, show support, and fight for equality.
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