And Then There Were Twelve: Minnesota Becomes Twelfth State To Legalize Same-Sex Marriage
With Governor Mark Dayton’s signature on Tuesday, Minnesota officially became the 12th state in the nation — and the second in the midwest — to legalize gay marriage. They’re the third state just this month to do so, joining Delaware and Rhode Island in making marriage equality the law this May. Minnesota’s law takes effect on August 1st.
As we’ve noted before at The Atlantic Wire, the wave of states legalizing gay marriage in recent months follows two big anti-gay pushes during the Clinton and George W. Bush presidencies. So, even though the current President, a majority of the Senate, and a majority of the American population support it, the fight for same-sex marriage in the U.S. is far from over, as our updated GIF map clearly shows. In fact, Minnesota voters were asked just six months ago to vote on writing the state’s then-existing ban on gay marriage into its constitution. That effort, obviously, failed. Sorry, Michele Bachmann.
So, what’s next? A measure to legalize same-sex marriage is currently pending in Illinois. If the bill, which passed in the state Senate on Valentine’s Day, also manages to pass the House (which is far from a given at this point), Governor Pat Quinn has vowed to sign it into law.
New Mexico gives no shits.
(via keeboch)
