Any day now, the United States Supreme Court will announce its decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, the case LGBT activists are expecting will see marriage equality become the law of the land across the country.
On the face of things, the story of same-sex marriage would seem to have begun in 2004, when Massachusetts became the first state to grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples. But the history of marriage equality actually goes back much further, to the 1970s, when a Minnesota couple first set the wheels in motion.
Photo via Flickr/Ted Eytan
Special thanks to Freedom To Marry for their detailed timeline, and Human Rights Campaign for their graphics
After being denied a marriage license in Minnesota in 1970, Richard Baker and James Michael McConnell sue the state, along with two other couples. The Minnesota Supreme Court rules against them, prompting an appeal to the United States Supreme Court in Baker v. Nelson.
On October 10, 1972, the Supreme Court issues a one-sentence statement refusing to hear the case: "The appeal is dismissed for want of a substantial federal question."
Photo via WikiCommons/Minnesota Historical Society
On April 21, 1975, County Clerk Clela Rorex in Boulder, Colorado issues marriage licenses to six same-sex couples. One of those couples, Richard Adams and Tony Sullivan, are bi-national and apply for Immigration and Naturalization Services to allow for Adams (an American) to sponsor Sullivan (an Australian). After being denied, they sue the Federal government for recognition of their marriage.
By 1982, both a Federal Court and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals had restricted marriage in Colorado to heterosexual couples.
Photo courtesy of Limited Partnership
In a landmark case, the Hawaii Supreme Court rules on May 5, 1993 in the case Baehr v. Lewin that denying same-sex couples the right to marry violates the Hawaii Constitution's Equal Protections Clause.
While siding with plaintiffs Ninia Baehr and Genora Dancel, Tammy Rodrigues and Antoinette Pregil, and Pat Logan and Joseph Melilio, the court does not allow marriages to begin immediately. Instead, it affords the State the opportunity to justify the continued denial of marriage to same-sex couples before overturning the ban.
Photo of the cover of The Advocate magazine, February 1997.
Largely spurred on by conservative fears after marriage equality's progress in Hawaii, Democratic President Bill Clinton signs the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) into law on September 21, 1996.
Approved by large majorities in both houses of Congress, the law defines marriage as a heterosexual union on the Federal level, denying same-sex couples the more than 1,138 protections and rights marriage receives from the Federal Government.
Photo via Flickr/Bob McNeely
On May 3, 1998, anti-gay forces in both Hawaii and Alaska succeed in passing constitutional amendments banning same-sex marriage. Over the next 14 years, 27 more states would follow suit.
2000: Nebraska and Nevada
2004: Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Oregon
2005: Kansas and Texas
2006: Alabama, Idaho, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, Wisconsin
2008: Arizona, California, and Florida
2012: North Carolina
Graphic via WikiCommons/Jersyko
On May 17, 2004, Massachusetts begins marrying same-sex couples, making it only the sixth jurisdiction in the world to do so (after the Netherlands, Belgium, Ontario, British Columbia, and Quebec).
At 12:01 AM on May 17, more than 250 couples flock to City Hall to get their marriage licenses, with Marcia Hams and Susan Shepherd (right), pictured, the very first.
Marriage equality was realized through a judicial ruling from the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, which found in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health on November 18, 2003 that it was unconstitutional for the state to ban same-sex marriage, by a majority of 4-3.
Photo via REUTERS/Jessica Rinaldi
In the lead-up to the 2004 election, and spurred on by equality in Massachusetts, sitting President George W. Bush endorses an amendemnt to the United States Constitution that would restrict marriage to two people of the opposite sex.
However, in defiance of his party's official stance, President Bush also announces his support for civil unions, saying that it should be a matter for the states to decide.
Photo via WikiCommons/Eric Draper
On September 6, 2005, the California State Legislature becomes the first in the nation to pass a marriage equality bill. Then-Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, however, vetoes the legislation. Two years later he would repeat the move, again vetoing a marriage equality bill approved by his state's elected representatives.
On May 15, 2008, the California Supreme Court rules that same-sex couples are entitled to marriage. The first legal same-sex weddings begin in California the next month.
Photo by Getty
Almost immediately after marriage becomes legal in California, anti-gay groups succeed in getting Proposition 8, an initiative to overturn the California Supreme Court's ruling, on the ballot for the November election.
On November 4, 2008, Prop 8 succeeds, revoking the freedom to marry for California's same-sex couples.
Photo via WikiCommons/Richard Johnstone
In 2009, the Vermont General Assembly (state legislature) votes to extend full marriage rights to same-sex couples (civil unions were legalized in 2000). So overwhelming was the support for the bill that suppoters were able to overide Governor Jim Douglas's veto, enshrining equality in law on April 7, 2009.
This marked the first instance in the United States of marriage equality being successfully legalized through legisaltive, rather than judicial, action.
Photo via Getty
On August 11, 2010, CNN releases the first ever national poll showing majority support for same-sex marriage. The poll found that 52% of Americans supported marriage equality, a dramatic rise from the figure in 1996, which showed only 27% support.
Photo via Flickr/Torbakhopper
By 2010, marriage equality has spread from the single state of Massachusetts to Connecticut (October, 2009), Iowa (April, 2009), New Hampshire (June, 2009), and Washington D.C. (December, 2009).
On November 11, 2011, the Obama Administration announces that it will no longer defend the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), citing its blatant discrimination against LGBT people. As more and more Federal judges were ruling against the constitutionality of the DOMA, then-Attorney General Eric Holder recommended to President Obama that the Department of Justice "no longer assert its constitutionality in court."
Following this move, Obama's government files briefs in a number of casing arguing the unconstitutionality of the law.
Photo by Getty
On March 16, 2011, a bill for the Respect for Marriage Act is introduced by Jerrold Nadler (NY) to the House of Representatives and Dianne Feinstein (CA) to the Senate. The law would officially overturn the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), and mandate that the Federal Government recognize same-sex marriages and treat them as equal to opposite-sex marriages.
Still unpassed to this day, Nadler and Feinstein introduced the bill again to this most recent session of Congress.
Photo via Wiki Commons/Lawrence Jackson
On May 9, 2012, President Barack Obama makes history by becoming the first sitting United States President to come out in support of marriage equality. In an exclusive interview with ABC's Robin Roberts, President Obama says: "I’ve just concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married."
The statement comes a week after Vice President Joe Biden came out in support of same-sex marriage on Meet The Press, the day after North Carolina banned same-sex marriage and civil unions.
While the President said that he personally supported the rights of gay and lesbian couples to marry, he also said that he believed it was an issue that should be left up to individual states.
Photo via Wiki Commons/Pete Souza
At the Democratic National Convention in 2012, the Democratic Party officially makes marriage equality a platform issue. It is a hugely significant point, marking the first time that a major political party in the United States declared unequivocally that it supports and would work towards full equality for same-sex couples.
Photo via Wiki Commons/White House
Marriage equality continues to spread, first to New York (June, 2011) and then, on an incredible day, to Maryland, Washington, and Maine (November, 2012) as voters in all three states approve same-sex marriage at the ballots.
On December 7, 2012, the Supreme Court announces that it will hear United States v. Windsor, a challenge to the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), and Hollingsworth v. Perry, an appeal against a ruling in California that struck down Prop 8.
Photo via WikiCommons/UpstateNYer
As the Supreme Court readies to hear the oral arguments in United States v. Windsor, the challenge to the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) brought by Edie Windsor, former President Bill Clinton, who had signed DOMA into law in 1996, urges the Supreme Court to find the law unconstitutional.
In an Op-Ed in the Washington Post, he says: "As the president who signed the act into law, I have come to believe that DOMA is contrary to those principles and, in fact, incompatible with our Constitution."
Photo via Flickr/Roger H. Goun
With the support of Florida Senator Bill Nelson, April 4, 2013 marks the first time that a majority of United States Senators publicly support marriage equality. In the weeks preceeding, dozens of Senators, including a number of Republicans, had come out in support.
In a statement to The Tampa Bay Times, Senator Nelson says: "I will add my name to the petition of senators asking the Supreme Court to declare the law that prohibits gay marriage unconstitutional."
Photo via Wiki Commons/Architect of the Capitol
At 10:06 AM on June 26, 2013, the Supreme Court announces its decision in United States v. Windsor. With a 5-4 majority, Section 3 of the Defense of Mariage Act is ruled unconstitutional, meaning that the Federal Government is obligated to recognize same-sex marriages legally performed in states that allow it, and afford the same benefits and rights to those couples.
Justice Kennedy delivers the Court's opinion, stating: "DOMA’s principal effect is to identify a subset of state-sanctioned marriages and make them unequal. The principal purpose is to impose inequality, not for other reasons like governmental efficiency. Responsibilities, as well as rights, enhance the dignity and integrity of the person. And DOMA contrives to deprive some couples married under the laws of their State, but not other couples, of both rights and responsibilities."
Photo of Edie Windsor, via Gavel Grab
At 10:25 AM on June 26, 2013, the Supreme Court announces its decision in the case Hollingsworth v. Perry. With a 5-4 majority, the court dismisses the challenge, ordering the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to adhere to the original Distric Court's ruling, issued on June 17, 2010, which overturned Prop 8.
Marriage equality, therefore, returns to California.
Photo via Wiki Commons/Prop 8 Gone, Finally
In September 2013, former President George H. W. Bush and former First Lady Barbara Bush serve as witnesses to the marriage of their friends, Bonnie Clement and Helen Thorgalsen. The office of the former Republican president says in response to questions about his stance on marriage equality: "They were private citizens attending a private ceremony for two friends."
While his son, George W. Bush has remained vague on the issue of same-sex marriage since leaving office, his parents aren't the only Bushes to have shown support. His wife, former First Lady Laura Bush, came out in support in 2010, as did his former Vice President, Dick Cheney, whose daughter is a lesbian.
Photo via Facebook/Helen Thorgalsen
In October of 2014, former President Jimmy Carter (of the four living ex-presidents, he served first), says that he believes same-sex marriage should be a States' rights issue.
The opinion marks a departure from comments given immediately after the Supreme Court struck down Article 3 of DOMA in 2013, when he said that the Court should have made a more sweeping ruling, legalizing marriage equality across the whole of the United States.
In a statement to CNN in June 2013, the former Democratic president, the first and only evangelical president in the nation's history, said: "It should be a right nationwide ... it's coming."
Photo via WikiCommons/U.S. National Archives
On October 6, 2014, the Supreme Court denies review of five appeals to marriage equality rulings, establishing same-sex marriage in Utah, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Virginia. While the immediate effect is felt in those five states, by affirming pro-equality rulings from the Tenth, Seventh, and Fourth Circuit Courts of Appeals, a precedent is set that allows for a rapid growth of marriage equality states.
The next day, the Ninth Circuit rules in favor of marriage equality in Idaho and Nevada, similarly setting a precedent.
The fall of DOMA coupled with the Supreme Court's dismissal of appeals against pro-equality Circuit Court rulings triggered an unprecedented spread of marriage equality.
First, of course, was California, which saw marriage return with the overturn of Prop 8 (June, 2013). Then came Delaware (July, 2013), Minnesota (August, 2013), Rhode Island (August, 2013), New Jersey (October, 2013), New Mexico (December, 2013), Hawaii (December, 2013), Oregon (May, 2014), Pennsylvania (May, 2014), and Illinois (June, 2014).
Following the Supreme Court's action (or rather, lack of action) in October, marriage equality spreads to Oklahoma (October, 2014), Virginia (October, 2014), Utah (October, 2014), Indiana (October, 2014), Wisconsin (October, 2014), Colorado (October, 2014), West Virginia (October, 2014), Nevada (October, 2014), North Carolina (October, 2014), Alaska (October, 2014), Idaho (October, 2014), Arizona (October, 2014), Wyoming (October, 2014), Kansas (November, 2014), Montana (November, 2014), South Carolina (November, 2014), Florida (January, 2015), and Alabama (February, 2015).
Within a two-month period of 2014, the number of marriage equality states nearly doubled, jumping from 19 to 35, plus Washington D.C.
On November 6, 2014, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals breaks rank and upholds marriage equality bans in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee. The first time that an appelate court had ruled that states have the right to deny marriage to same-sex couples, it establishes a conflict among the Circuit Courts, thereby putting pressure on the Supreme Court to take up the case for marriage equality once and for all.
On January 16, 2015, the Supreme Court announces that it will hear the appeals to all four Sixth Circuit cases, combining them into one case, Obergefell v. Hodges.
On April 28, 2015, thousands gather outside the Supreme Court building in Washington D.C. as the Court hears the oral arguments in Obergefell v. Hodges, the case expected to bring marriage equality to every corner of the United States.
In addition to the legal arguments taking place during trial, a number of amicus briefs were filed calling for the Supreme Court to rule in favor of equality. Among them were briefs filed by: the President of the United States and his government, a group of 167 Member of the House of Representatives and 44 Senators, more than 300 Republican politicans and pundits rallied by Ken Mehlman, a group of 226 mayors, and a People's Brief signed by more than 207,000 americans.
Photo via Instagram/Miranda Green
The state of same-sex marriage in America today is complex, with much hanging on how the Supreme Court rules in Obergefell v. Hodges.
Same-sex couples can legally marry in 35 states (dark blue).
In three states with pro-equality rulings (purple), there are restrictions. Missouri recognizes marriages performed in states where it is legal, and some marriages performed in certain counties, like St. Louis. Most counties in Kansas grant marriage licenses, but the state government does not recognize them. In Alabama, the state Supreme Court ordered probate judges to stop issuing same-sex couples marriage licenses, despite orders from a Federal judge.
In five states (yellow), same-sex marriage bans have been struck down, but stayed pending a final decision by the United States Supreme Court. These states are Arkansas, Mississippi, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Texas.
In seven states (red), bans against same-sex marriage have either been upheld, or not struck down. Those states are Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, North Dakota, and Tennessee.
Graphic via WikiCommons/Lokal_Profil
As a nation, we've come an incredible distance, and our attitude towards marriage equality is clear.
Less than 20 years ago, only 27% of Americans believed that same-sex couples should have the right to marry. Today, more than 60% of Americans support marriage equality, a figure which rises to 70% among young people.
Graphic courtesy of Human Rights Campaign
The groundwork has been layed—forty years in the making—and now all that's left is for the nine United States Supreme Court Justices to announce their decision.
Expectations are that Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Elena Kagan, Stephen Breyer, and Sonia Sotomayor will rule in favor of marriage equality (Ginsburg and Kagan have officiated same-sex marriages in the past), while Justices Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas, and Samuel Alito will vote against. The two swing-votes are Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Anthony Kennedy.
>> Learn More About the Justices Who Will Decide the Future of Marriage Equality <<
Photo via WikiCommons/Steve Petteway
If the United States legalizes same-sex marriage, it will become the 21st country to do so.
In order, the other 20 countries are: the Netherlands (2001), Belgium (2003), Spain (2005), Canada (2005), South Africa (2006), Norway (2009), Sweden (2009), Portugal (2010), Iceland (2010), Argentina (2010), Denmark (2012), Brazil (2013), France (2013), Uruguay (2013), New Zealand (2013), United Kingdom (2014), Luxembourg (2015), Finland (2015), Greenland (2015), and Ireland (2015).
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