From the LA Times:
A confederacy of gay-friendly states is taking shape. It will create a major divide in the United States, a divide that could last a long time, given that the red states -- places such as Alabama and Utah and South Carolina -- are about as likely to give up on "traditional marriage" as they are likely to turn all their churches into medical marijuana dispensaries.
The turn toward approval of same-sex marriage in several regions of the country is so sudden and so unexpected that Americans have not really begun to ponder what the ramifications of this new national divide may be. Canada legalized same-sex marriage nationwide in 2005 and, thus far, straight marriages among Canadians have not been sundered and God has not brought down his wrath on the land of maple leaves and Mounties. But in the United States, a national law is not in the cards.
On this issue, states will continue to decide for themselves and take separate paths. So the question is, can a house divided against itself stand? Can a nation endure that is half slave to tradition and half free to marry?
In an answer to a comment on a previous post, I looked up some figures. Right now marriage is legal in 9 states, plus several additional jurisdictions including Washington DC and two Indian nations. CA would be the 10th state. Given its large population, this would mean over 27% of Americans would live in states or jurisdictions with marriage equality. The HRC has a helpful graphic.
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