Perhaps no social issue has impassioned more sustained debate among Americans in the last decade than the question of marriage rights for same-sex couples. Gay couples sought such protections for their relationships as early as 1971, Baker v.
Formal Recognition of Gay and Lesbian Relationships
According to the Human Rights Campaign, 26 states have adopted constitutional provisions limiting marriage to opposite-sex couples. Nineteen states have enacted similar statutory restrictions. Meanwhile, ten states and the District of Columbia have adopted varying levels of legal protection for same-sex couples and their children. While only one American jurisdiction allows same-sex couples to marry, at least five countries worldwide, including Canada, do so. Much is hazy in this legal landscape, but one thing is clear: In the short term, sister-state recognition of these relationships will be spotty at best, and will be fought out on a case-by-case basis.
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