State may force gay issue onto nation

Thirty-seven states and the federal government have laws that refuse to recognize gay marriages. Americans oppose legalizing gay marriage by a 2-1 ratio.

Yet gay marriage is closer than ever to becoming a reality.

Massachusetts will legalize gay marriage on May 17, barring an unforeseen legal roadblock. And language in the U.S. Constitution could require that gay marriages recognized in one state be honored nationwide. The issue could wind up before the U.S. Supreme Court.

At stake is whether the legal benefits of marriage should be extended to same-sex couples on such issues as child custody, tax benefits and medical care.

To gay rights advocates, the movement toward gay marriages is the beginning of the inevitable: a civil rights battle that will lead to gay couples being treated the same as heterosexual couples. To opponents of gay marriage, it shows how judges twist rulings to fit their own beliefs, regardless of the law or public opinion.

"In today's judicial climate, no law is safe," says Don Wildmon, chairman of the American Family Association, a group in Tupelo, Miss., that opposes gay marriage. "You've always got judges in Massachusetts or somewhere who think they are above the law."

The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts voted 5-4 on Nov. 18 that denying lesbians and gay men the right to marry violates the state Constitution's guarantee of equal rights for all citizens. Many state constitutions have similar wording about equal rights. That heartens gay rights advocates and worries opponents.

Nebraska, Nevada, Hawaii and Alaska have added bans on gay marriage to their state constitutions, and others are considering it. A federal court challenge to the Nebraska amendment could decide whether states can ban civil unions and domestic partnerships, too.

"Ever since this amendment passed, it's been painful for gays and lesbians to realize how much it affects our lives," says Nancy Brink, an Omaha minister who is part of the legal challenge.

Opponents of gay marriage agree they are vulnerable in courts, although they have won more battles than they have lost. Courts in Arizona, Indiana and New Jersey ruled this year that gays have no right to marry.

The debates come at a time of unprecedented advances for gay rights. The U.S. Supreme Court in June overturned a Texas ban on sodomy. The Episcopal Church installed its first openly gay bishop last month.

Many opponents want an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that bans gay marriage. They say the Defense of Marriage Acts that most states and Congress have passed cannot withstand court challenges.