American Foundation for Equal Rights

Marriage News Blog

Interactive Map Shows the “Crazy Patchwork” of Marriage Rights

Interact with the map on the L.A. Times website

A new interactive map by the Los Angeles Times tracks 10 years of progress and setbacks of marriage equality in the United States. By scrolling through the timeline, you can see how each state has changed over time.

For more than a decade, the battle over same-sex marriage and other rights for gay couples has been hard fought in U.S. courts and legislatures and at the ballot box. Use this map to view milestones in the fight and how state laws have changed since 2000.

If you scroll over to today, however, one state might look odd to you: California. Currently on the map it shows the state in the “gay marriage legal” category.

Technically, this is true. While gay and lesbians couples can’t yet get married in the state, Prop. 8 has been ruled unconstitutional. Unfortunately, the decision does not go into effect until the U.S. Supreme Court weighs in on the issue, by either deciding to hear the case and ultimately issuing a decision, or by deciding not to take the case.

Confused by the map? The Movement Advancement Project has one which goes into greater detail.

Not pictured: legally married couples are denied over 1,000 federal rights and benefits because of the so-called “Defense of Marriage Act.”