Support for Same-Sex Marriage On the Rise

In the past decade, support for gay marriage has been steadily on the rise.  According to a comprehensive report done by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, this steady increase has been defined by the generational gap, although all generations have seen increases in support for same-sex marriage.
The Millennial Generation (those born after 1980) has seen the most dramatic shift, rising from 51% favoring legalized same-sex marriages in 2003 to 70% in 2013.  In addition to the substantial increase, the Millennial Generation also makes up a larger percentage of the adult population now than it did in 2003 (tripling from 9% to 27%).

Millennials have not been alone in coming around to legalizing same-sex marriages.  The Silent Generation (1928-1945) has almost doubled its rate of support over the same span of ten years, increasing from 17% to 31%.  Baby Boomers (1946-1964) and Generation X (1965-1980) have seen more modest increases in support from 33% to 38% and 41% to 49%, respectively.

To deepen the understanding of shifting attitudes, surveyors asked respondents whether their views on same-sex marriage had changed or if it had always been that way.  One-in-seven (14%) of the entire population have changed their minds to support same-sex marriage (this accounts for 28% of all proponents of same-sex marriage).  The main reason for changing one's mind, according to respondents, was knowing someone who was homosexual (32%), while a close second was personally growing more open (25%).  Be sure to check out the rest of the report, which shows larger societal responses to homosexuality in general, shifting responses to gay rights issues,and changing religious stances.

In Response to Gay Marriage Support, 1 in 4 Americans View the President Less Favorably

Following President Obama’s endorsement of legalized gay marriage, the Pew Research Center released a survey on how the announcement has affected Americans’ opinions of the President.  Overall, 52% say their opinion has not changed, 25% say they now view the President less favorably, and 19% say they view the President more favorably.  Many in the media suspected the African American community’s support of President Obama would decrease; however, the survey shows that 68% of African Americans were unaffected by the announcement, 16% view the President more favorably, and 13% view the President less favorably.  Among young adults ages 18-29, and adults aged 30-49, 22% view the President more favorably.  These two age groups were the most likely age groups to view the President more favorably with the announcement.  Among seniors aged 65 and over, 42% now view the President less favorably.

Half of Americans Support Legal Gay Marriage

Gallup ran a poll on May 8^th which determined that fifty percent of Americans support legal gay marriage.  This percentage dropped three points since last year; however, this year marks just the second year since Gallup began tracking this question that at least 50% of Americans supported legal gay marriage.  On the other hand, 48% believe gay marriage should not be permitted.  In 1996, when Gallup first began tracking the gay marriage debate, only 27% supported legalizing gay marriage and 68% were opposed.  65% of Democrats believe gay marriage should be legal, while only 22% of Republicans approve.  This stark contrast between political parties characterizes the hotly contested debate in America, and this poll underscores the divisiveness of the issue.

Pew Survey Finds Majority Believes Homosexuality Should Be Accepted, Increasing Percentage in Favor of Gay Marriage

According to the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, a majority of Americans (58%) believe homosexuality should be accepted, and not discouraged, by society. This finding becomes magnified the younger the survey population, with 63% of those under 50 years of age and 69% of individuals under 30 years of age saying that society should accept homosexuality. Among those older than 50 years of age, a smaller majority (52%) agrees that it should be accepted.

And although a majority of Americans do not favor gay marriage today, the survey shows increased support for the cause, with the 45% today who favor gays and lesbians being legally allowed to marry a large increase from the 35% who took that stance in April 2009. 46% of those surveyed said they were against same-sex marriage, 1% more than those in favor but noticeably less than the 54% who were against same-sex marriage in April 2009. The Pew Center writes: "Opposition to gay marriage has fallen by 19 points (from 65%) since 1996."

Opposition to gay parenting has also fallen in recent years, with the 35% today who say more gay parents is a bad development for society a big decrease from the 50% who viewed the trend negatively four years ago.Although majorities across most demographic groups were found to support societal acceptance of homosexuality, views toward homosexuality were found to differ significantly based on an individual's religious and political preferences, as well as his/her race and gender. While 67% of Democrats and 63% of independents say homosexuality should be accepted, only 40% of Republicans share that opinion.

And while 79% of the religiously unaffiliated, 66% of white Catholics, and 65% of white mainline Protestants believe homosexuality should be accepted, percentages are smaller among other religious groupings. Only 29% of white evangelical Protestants believe homosexuality should be accepted, while 63% believe it should be discouraged by society.

Among races, Hispanics (64%) and whites (58%) were found to be more supportive of homosexual acceptance than African Americans (49%). With regard to gender, women (64%) are more accepting than men (52%).

Findings are from the Pew political typology survey, released earlier this May.

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Most Support Gay Marriage

For the first time ever, a majority of Americans appear to favor legal recognition of gay marriage. Four credible polls in the last several months have shown a majority of Americans in favor of gay marriage, suggesting a remarkably rapid shift on the issue over the past several years. As recently as the last presidential election, opponents of gay marriage outnumbered supporters by about 15%. For the past twenty years, support for gay marriage has gained approximately 2% a year (with a corresponding decline in opposition) but that change has accelerated to about 4% a year in the last two years.

Gay Wedding and Marriage Resources

Making news around the globe, the legal rights and recognition of gays & lesbians is becoming manifested in the definition of marriage. More and more companies and communities across the US are recognizing the union of two gay men or women in terms of civil unions or domestic partnerships, granting them the same basic rights as heterosexual married couples. Health insurance benefits, estate planning and more are becoming commonplace in many gay & lesbian lives, but not all. The right of marriage, however, along with all of its legal and tax implications, is the final goal for many gays & lesbians. It would be society's way of showing that once and for all gays & lesbians are now deemed equal in the eyes of the law.

Several countries around the world have already legalized gay marriage including Denmark, The Netherlands and now Spain. In North America, Canada has legalized gay marriage, and the subsequent travel by gays and lesbians to these destinations to have their unions formalized, albeit in a foreign country, has already begun. Gay marriage is legal in Massachusetts (to residents only, but that may change soon) and in California (final approval on the November ballot in 2008), and many of the civil rights of married couples are available to gay couples in Vermont!

Several companies, both in travel and wedding/event planning, have cropped up in recent years to address these needs. In addition, with civil unions being legal in Vermont, many Americans have traveled there over the past few years to have legal civil union ceremonies performed, even though those unions are only recognized and have legal rights in the state of Vermont. With thecurrent status of legal gay marriage in California, many marriage and wedding companies have either added gay couples as one of their new target markets, or have started a new business targeting this new-found opportunity, performing a wide variety of ceremonies to date.

In print, there are now two gay wedding magazines. The first is the Rainbow Wedding Network Magazine, launched in April 2006 as the inside source for all the current events, planning resources, trends, home and family ideas and other vital issues for gay and lesbian couples, their families, advocates and allies. It includes exclusive interviews, community connections, political dialogue, fashion and fun. The second, and more recent, is With This Ring Magazine, including articles on fashion, family matters, legal issues, romance and news.
LINKS:
- www.rainbowweddingnetworkmagazine.com
- www.withthisring-magazine.com

To locate these various resources online, several sites have emerged to address this market. GayWeddings.com, GayMarriageWorld.com and the RainbowWeddingNetwork.com are three in particular that have emerged recently.

One of the first web sites online dedicated to this community was GayWeddings.com. Started as more of an online resource site for gays & lesbians looking for more information on gay weddings and commitment ceremonies, this site has evolved into a full-fledged gay wedding portal, offering an online directory of wedding vendors, as well as a full range of hotels and inns catering to the gay wedding ceremony and honeymoon.

Another site that has come online recently is GayMarriageWorld.com, a comprehensive online portal dedicated to the world of gay marriage and weddings. This site offers news and various articles about gay marriage, as well as an online community base where gays & lesbians can become members (for free) to meet, greet and discuss gay marriage topics of interest to them.

Right beside GayMarriageWorld.com is RainbowWeddingNetwork.com. In addition to offering a comprehensive online directory of gay-friendly wedding services, they also offer an online wedding registry. They also put on the recent “Same Love, Same Rights” Gay Wedding Expos held throughout the country.

Other sites that are also emerging in this market include GayWeddingFodder.com and GayRites.net.

In the retailing side of life, OutVite.com has a wonderful site dedicated to custom-printed gay & lesbian wedding invitations, commitment ceremony invitations, adoption and birth announcements, party invitations and more. Additional retailers include TwoBrides.com and TwoGrooms.com.

In the world of travel, TheWeddingExperience.com has gone above and beyond in offering gays and lesbians the opportunity to marry on board a cruise ship sailing out of Miami, Florida.

The destinations of choice for gay & lesbian weddings and commitment ceremonies seem to be Hawaii, Vermont (first state to legally recognize civil unions) and California. There are a number of wedding planners and commitment ceremony companies in these regions ready to help you with all aspects of your gay wedding, commitment ceremony and honeymoon.

In Canada, there have been a variety of services cropping up to offer gay & lesbian weddings to both Canadian and US Citizens. Now that gay marriage is legal in Canada, just knowing that one’s marriage is legal in at least one major country has been all it takes for Americans to flock to Vancouver and Toronto to have their ceremony performed and documented over the past few years.

A small but growing sector in the Marriage and Weddings category is the Gay Wedding Expo. Taking the lead in this is the Rainbow Wedding Network, with wedding expos recently held in Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Atlanta, with upcoming venues to include Seattle and other key areas on the map when it comes to gay & lesbian marriage and wedding ceremonies.

In addition, there is a new company, GBK Productions, bringing us the Same Sex in the City wedding expos in Los Angeles and Palm Springs in 2008.
LINKS:
- www.gbkproductions.com/events2008/samesexinthecity/

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