Mass. Marriage Equality Anniversary

May 17, 2005

BOSTON — In Massachusetts, same-sex marriage has become routine, and — although Republican Gov. Mitt Romney and some conservative groups are seeking to outlaw the nuptials — routinely accepted. For the nearly 6,200 gay and lesbian couples who got married in Massachusetts since May 17, 2004, the best thing about the last 12 months has been that they still have their marriage licenses — and the rights that go with them — unlike the same-sex couples who married last year in San Francisco.

Since Massachusetts legally wed the first same-sex couple a year ago today, 18 states have passed constitutional amendments to ban gay marriage.

According to a Boston Globe poll released Sunday, half of all Americans don't want their states to recognize another state's same-sex marriage licenses. Some say the issue contributed to polarizing the country during the 2004 presidential election last fall, ultimately helping to re-elect George W. Bush.

After the initial euphoria over the right to marry, same-sex marriage has become part of everyday life.

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health recorded 1,635 same-sex marriages in May 2004, only 300 fewer than heterosexual ceremonies. Friedes said the number was so high because many of the couples who got married last May had been together for years, or even decades.

As the controversy has died down, so has the number of gay weddings: In the first two months of 2005, only 148 gay couples wed. Fewer than 10 couples have divorced, according to the Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders. At the same time, Massachusetts' straight residents appear to be more accepting of same-sex marriage. A Boston Globe poll in March indicated that 56 percent of people here supported same-sex marriage, up from 40 percent in the spring of 2004.

Since the state's Supreme Judicial Court ruled in November 2003 that forbidding gay marriage violated the state Constitution, opponents of same-sex nuptials have been trying to change the Constitution. Lawmakers last year passed a proposed amendment that would ban gay marriage but legalize civil unions. The State Legislature, as urged by the governor, will vote later this year on whether to place the amendment on the ballot for 2006.

The U.S. Supreme Court last fall rejected a request by conservative groups to overturn the November 2003 decision by the Massachusetts Supreme Court legalizing gay marriage.

The granting of marriage equality, however, has caused a significant backlash, however. Earlier this year, Kansas joined 17 other states that passed a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. Alabama, South Dakota and Tennessee plan to vote on similar bans next year. More than a dozen other states are also considering laws that would prevent gays and lesbians from getting married.

Other states have responded by providing some lesser form of equality. For example, after marriage became an option in Massachusetts, Maine passed a limited domestic partnership law. And recently, Connecticut passed a civil union act which grants most of the rights of marriage to same-sex couples — but also forbids recognition of same-sex marriages.

No one can predict what will happen in the next year. The support for an amendment to the U.S. Constitution forbidding marriage equality remains high. Many states are passing increasingly repressive laws forbidding recognition of same-sex relationships. It remains to be seen whether those laws will be upheld.

But perhaps the best thing about this one-year anniversary is that it has passed so quietly in Massachusetts. The sky has not fallen and same-sex marriage has not resulted in an increase in divorce in Massachusetts — or elsewhere in the U.S.