The American Nation A History of the United States, Combined Volume (14th Edition)

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acceptance of same-sex marriage

as essential for wider acceptance.

They noted that gay and lesbian

couples formed bonds that were

as close and loving as those of

heterosexual couples. Why, gay

and lesbian couples asked,

should they not be allowed to

adopt children or receive the

legal protections and benefits of

marriage? Conservative groups

argued that religious texts and

moral traditions had defined

marriage as heterosexual. “Any

sex outside of the marriage bond

between a man and a woman is

violating God’s law,” Jerry

Falwell declared. In 2006 con-

servatives, backed by President

George W. Bush, proposed an

amendment to the Constitution

that would define marriage as “a

union between a man and a

woman.” The measure fell just short of passage in

the Senate.

In 2000 Vermont became the first state to recog-

nize same-sex civil unions, providing gay and lesbian

couples with some of the legal rights of marriage. In

In 2004, San Francisco granted the first same-sex marriage license to Phyllis Lyon, 79, and Del
Martin, 83, longtime activists. Because California did not allow same-sex marriages, San Francisco
officials explained that theirs was an act of “civil disobedience.”

Table 31.1Gender Activist Victories and Conservative Responses

Year Activist Victory Consequence Conservative Response (after 1972)

1964 Title VII, Civil Rights Act

of 1964

Prohibited employers from discrim-

inating on account of sex; enforced

by federal government

1965 Griswold v. Connecticut Supreme Court asserted a “right to

privacy” to allow dissemination of

information on birth control

1972 Equal Rights Amendment

(ERA) approved by Congress

Extended the equal rights protec-

tions of Fourteenth Amendment

to women

Phyllis Schlafly inaugurated “Stop ERA”

campaign (1973), which blocked

ratification

1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court legalized

most abortions

Jerry Falwell’s Moral Majority founded;

helped elect Ronald Reagan president

(1980); named more conservative

Supreme Court justices

2000 Vermont recognized

same-sex unions

Paved way for a half-dozen states to

approve same-sex marriage

George W. Bush-backed proposed

constitutional amendment to limit

marriage to heterosexuals narrowly

defeated in Senate (2006)

Another long-term objective was same-sex mar-
riage. Some gay and lesbian leaders disagreed; Milk,
for example, maintained that gay liberation entailed
breaking free from heterosexual conventions,
including marriage. But other activists regarded