Same-sex marriage in New England

The New England region of the United States is shaded in red, above.

Laws regarding same-sex marriage in New England

  Same-sex marriage legal or legalized

  Same-sex marriage banned by statute

Legal recognition of same-sex relationships
Marriage
Argentina Belgium Canada Iceland Netherlands Norway Portugal South Africa Spain Sweden
Performed in some jurisdictions
Mexico: Mexico City United States: CT, DC, IA, MA, NH, NY, VT, Coquille, Suquamish
Recognized, not performed
Aruba (Netherlands only) Curaçao (Netherlands only) Israel Mexico: all states (Mexico City only) Sint Maarten (Netherlands only) United States: CA (conditional), MD
Civil unions and registered partnerships
Andorra Austria Brazil Colombia Czech Republic Denmark Ecuador Finland France - New Caledonia - Wallis and Futuna Germany Greenland Hungary Ireland Isle of Man Liechtenstein Luxembourg New Zealand Slovenia Switzerland United Kingdom Uruguay
Performed in some jurisdictions
Australia: ACT, NSW, TAS, VIC Mexico: COA United States: CA, CO, DE, HI, IL, ME, NJ, NV, OR, RI, WA, WI
Unregistered cohabitation
Australia Croatia Israel
Recognized in some jurisdictions
United States: MD
See also
Same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage legislation Timeline of same-sex marriage Recognition of same-sex unions in Europe Marriage privatization Civil union Domestic partnership Listings by country
LGBT portal
v · d · e

Same-sex marriage is legal or has been legalized in four of the six New England states: Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont, and New Hampshire. The New England region has been noted for being the nucleus of the same-sex marriage movement in the United States,^[1] with the region having among the most widespread and earliest legal support of any region. In 2004, Massachusetts became the first state in the United States to legalize same-sex marriage,^[2] to be followed by three more states between October 2008 and June 2009. This followed Vermont being the first-in-the-nation with civil unions in 2000.^[3] Currently, Iowa, New York and the District of Columbia are the only U.S. jurisdictions outside New England performing same-sex marriages, and California performed them for five months in 2008.

The legalization of same-sex marriage was part of a campaign which began in November 2008, called Six by Twelve, and was organized by the Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) to legalize same-sex marriage in all six New England states by 2012.^[4][5]

The region holds a number of firsts on same-sex marriage: Vermont was the first state to enact it through legislative means and not because of a judicial ruling,^[6][7] and Maine was the first state to have a governor sign a same-sex marriage bill that was not the result of a court decision.^[8] However, Maine's gay marriage law was repealed through a people's veto.

Rhode Island and Maine are the New England states that do not have same-sex marriage. Despite this, support in Rhode Island for same sex marriage is consistently within the 54% range.^[9] There have been numerous^{[1][10][11][12][13]} reasons given for why New England has found such strong legal recognition for same-sex marriages in comparison to the rest of the United States.

Overview

New England is the only part of the country where a block of states has granted marriage rights to same-sex couples.^[13] The rapid makeover of its legal landscape makes New England a notable standout within the United States.^[13] In other parts of the country, while support for same-sex marriage has been gaining steadily, is still a minority view.^[13] Only one state and one district outside the region, Iowa and the District of Columbia, currently allows same-sex marriage; voters in California struck down a law supporting such marriages during the fall of 2008.^[13]

Although the same-sex marriage movement started here five years ago, when Massachusetts became the first state to legalize it, its growing foothold in the region was not a foregone conclusion.^[13] Though politically liberal, New England has not been a hotbed of social revolution in the same vein as California.^[13]

Possible Reasons

There have been several reasons given for the strong legal recognition in New England, in contrast to the rest of the United States. For instance, New England has strong libertarian associations,^[1][10] and other social movements, such as abolition of slavery and women's suffrage, started in New England.^[1] In addition, voters in most New England states cannot initiate constitutional amendments, which has been a common strategy in preventing same-sex marriage elsewhere.^[1][10]

By polling

There are a number of demographics which worked to same-sex marriage proponents favour:

1. New England is regarded as the least religious region of the country, and religiousness has been tied in polls to opposition to same-sex marriage.^[1][11]
2. There are a large number of Democrats in New England, and Democrats are more likely than Republicans and independents to support same-sex marriage.^[13]
3. New England has higher education attainment levels than the rest of the country,^[13][14] and polling has shown that support for gay marriage rises with education levels.^{[13][15][16][17]}
4. Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire have among the highest percentage of white citizens in the country, and polls have shown whites are often less likely to oppose gay marriage than many ethnic minorities.^[13]

By culture

There have been a number of opinions made on possible cultural factors that could have contributed to the strong legal support in New England:

1. New Englanders outside Massachusetts share media markets and do not believe they have seen negative consequences from the state's legalization of same-sex marriage there.^[12][18] As well New Englanders have seen same-sex unions for a decade, since Vermont was the first in the nation with civil unions in 2000.^[13]
2. Same-sex couples have found more acceptance in New England for over a century, for instance "Boston marriages" between women in the 19th century.^[1]
3. There is a view of religion as private and personal, and a separation of one's own beliefs from politics, that does not necessarily exist in other regions of the country^[13]
4. Catholics, who dominate the region's religious landscape, were at one point a persecuted minority, and may see their own past reflected in the modern LGBT community.^[13]
5. The presence of GLAD in the region, which is based in Boston.^[13]

"Six by Twelve" campaign

The 6x12 campaign, led by GLAD and working with other statewide groups, began on November 18, 2008, the fifth anniversary of Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, which legalized same-sex marriage in Massachusetts,^[19] with the goal of bringing same-sex marriage to all of New England by 2012.

The campaign began a week after same-sex marriage was brought to Connecticut, and the campaign is striving for New England to be a "marriage equality zone."^[20] To achieve this, groups have been raising money, training volunteers and lobbying voters and lawmakers as part of this campaign, led by GLAD, which is a legal advocacy group and the group which persuaded the Supreme Courts in Massachusetts and Connecticut to allow same-sex marriage in 2003 and 2008.^[21] The campaign has been working primarily through state legislatures, and looking towards the future the campaign sees this as a road map for the rest of the country in 2012.^[22]

Some same-sex marriage opponents initially doubted that there was enough support for legislatures to pass laws for same-sex marriage; doubters also saw how same-sex marriage previously only advanced through the judiciary.^[22][23] But within six months into the campaign, same-sex marriage laws were passed in three more states, which brought the total New England states with same-sex marriage to five out of the six. However, the law in Maine was repealed due to a people's veto, funded heavily by organizations from outside the state on November 3, 2009. Currently, only four of the six have legalized same-sex marriage, although in Rhode Island there is a proposed same-sex marriage bill in the legislatures that is planned to be introduced some time in 2011.^[24]

By state

Massachusetts

Main article: Same-sex marriage in Massachusetts

Same-sex marriage in the U.S. state of Massachusetts began on May 17, 2004, as a result of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts ruling in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health that it was unconstitutional under the Massachusetts constitution to allow only opposite-sex couples to marry. Massachusetts became the sixth jurisdiction in the world (after the Netherlands, Belgium, Ontario, British Columbia, and Quebec) to legalize same-sex marriage. It was the first U.S. state to make same-sex marriages legal.^[2]

Connecticut

Main article: Same-sex marriage in Connecticut

Connecticut joined Massachusetts as the second state in the U.S. to legally perform marriages of same-sex couples on November 12, 2008.^[25]

Vermont

Main article: Same-sex marriage in Vermont

In April 2009, Vermont legalized same sex marriage, and became the first state to do it through the legislature and not judicial review. The vote came nine years after Vermont adopted its "first-in-the-nation" civil unions law in 2000,^[3] which was the first place in the United States to extend full legal recognition to same-sex couples. (Several states and cities already had "domestic partnership" registries prior to this point.)

Maine

Main article: Same-sex marriage in Maine

A bill to allow same-sex marriage in Maine was signed into law on May 6, 2009. Maine was the fifth U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage,^[26] and the second to legislate it.^[27] The governor also became the first in the nation to sign a same-sex marriage bill that was not the result of a court decision (Vermont had been vetoed by the governor and then overridden by the legislature).^[8]

However, while same-sex marriage was legalized in Maine^[28], there was a people's veto and enough signatures were collected to place the referendum question on the November 3, 2009 statewide ballot.^[29] Maine voters narrowly approved the referendum and repealed the new marriage law.

New Hampshire

Main article: Same-sex marriage in New Hampshire

A bill legalizing same-sex marriage was signed on June 3, 2009. Same-sex marriages began on January 1, 2010. Civil unions began on January 1, 2008; legislation for full marriages rights began in March 2009.

Rhode Island

Main article: Same-sex marriage in Rhode Island

Same-sex marriage is not currently legal in the state of Rhode Island; however, while several bills were introduced to the Rhode Island General Assembly in 2009 which would provide for same-sex marriages, the governor has promised to veto it, leading the 6x12 campaign and other same-sex marriage advocates to look towards 2011, when the Republican governor leaves office after a mandated term limit.^[30] Nevertheless, the odds against same-sex marriage in Rhode Island are considered rather higher than in the rest of New England, primarily on account of the influence of the Roman Catholic Church^[31]. The state has taken a more conservative stance on several social issues in the past, including abortion.^[32]

See also

United States

• Same-sex marriage in the United States
• Same-sex marriage status in the United States by state
• Same-sex marriage legislation in the United States

World

• Same-sex marriage
• Timeline of same-sex marriage
• Same-sex marriage legislation around the world
• Status of same-sex marriage

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f g} A Push Is On for Same-Sex Marriage Rights Across New England, New York Times, April 4, 2009
2. ^ ^{a b} Burge, Kathleen (2003-11-18). "SJC: Gay marriage legal in Mass.". The Boston Globe. http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2003/11/18/sjc_gay_marriage_legal_in_mass/. 
3. ^ ^{a b} Vermont legalizes gay marriage, Burlington Free Press, April 7, 2009
4. ^ 'Gay marriage' bill passes N.H. Senate, Baptist Press, April 24, 2009
5. ^ 6x12: Half-way There and Going Strong!, GLAD, April 14, 2009
6. ^ "Vt. legalizes same-sex marriage". The Burlington Free Press. 2009-04-07. http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/article/20090407/NEWS03/90407016. Retrieved 2009-04-07. ^{[dead link]}
7. ^ Goodnough, Abby (2009-04-07). "Vermont Legislature Makes Same-Sex Marriage Legal". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/08/us/08vermont.html. Retrieved May 23, 2010. 
8. ^ ^{a b} Russel, Jenna (2009-05-06). "Gay marriage law signed in Maine, advances in N.H". Boston.com. http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2009/05/gay_marriage_la.html. Retrieved 2009-05-06. 
9. ^ Gelman, Andrew (2009-06-11). "Gay marriage: a tipping point?". Columbia University. http://www.stat.columbia.edu/~cook/movabletype/archives/2009/06/gay_marriage_a.html. Retrieved 2009-06-17. 
10. ^ ^{a b c} Gay Marriage Advances in Maine, The New York Times, Abby Goodnough and Katie Zezima, May 5, 2009
11. ^ ^{a b} Lin, Joanna (2009-03-16). "New England surpasses West Coast as least religious region in America, study finds". Los Angeles Times. http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-beliefs16-2009mar16,0,842718.story. Retrieved 2009-05-15. 
12. ^ ^{a b} New England leads on same-sex marriage, NECN, May 7, 2009
13. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o} N.E.'s identity bolsters gay marriage tolerance, The Boston Globe, Jenna Russell, May 11, 2009
14. ^ Polls show Pa. resisting tide favoring gay marriage, Philadelphia Daily News, Will Bunch, May 19, 2009
15. ^ Value War, Paul Ryan Brewer, Rowman & Littlefield
16. ^ The politics of same-sex marriage, Craig A. Rimmerman, Clyde Wilcox, University of Chicago Press
17. ^ Same-sex Marriage, Field Research Corporation , 2003
18. ^ Massachusetts lets out-of-state gay couples marry, USA Today, July 31, 2008
19. ^ Five Years After Goodridge, GLAD Announces “6x12”, GLAD, November 18, 2008
20. ^ Same-sex marriage bills gain in N.E., The Boston Globe, David Abel, March 24, 2009
21. ^ Iowa a Midwestern maverick on same-sex marriage, San Francisco Chronicle, April 5, 2009
22. ^ ^{a b} Gay marriage backers target New England, Washington Times, January 4, 2009
23. ^ Same-sex 'marriage' enthusiasts target New England, One News Now, January 16, 2009
24. ^ http://www.ontopmag.com/article.aspx?id=6777&MediaType=1&Category=26
25. ^ "Same-sex marriages to begin Nov. 12 in Connecticut". 365Gay.com (via Associated Press). 11.04.2008. http://www.365gay.com/news/same-sex-marriages-to-begin-nov-12-in-connecticut/. Retrieved 2008-12-10. 
26. ^ 'Remarkable' gay marriage win for Iowa, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, May 10, 2009
27. ^ Maine OKs marriage, Jen Colletta, Philadelphia Gay News
28. ^ Maine becomes 5th U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage, PSL Web, May 16, 2009
29. ^ Gay marriage law official on Maine ballot
30. ^ Rhode Island marriage advocates look to 2011, Edge, May 7, 2009
31. ^ "Man and man in Maine". The Economist: pp. 37–40. 16 May. 
32. ^ Moskowitz, Eric (2009-06-15). "In R.I., some wary as tide of gay marriage rises at border". The Boston Globe. http://www.boston.com/news/local/rhode_island/articles/2009/06/15/in_ri_some_wary_as_tide_of_gay_marriage_rises_at_border/. Retrieved 2009-06-15.