Title: Same-sex marriage in the United States - Wikipedia
Headings: Same-sex marriage in the United States
Same-sex marriage in the United States
Contents
History
Legal issues
Federal law
State and territorial recognition
Counties not issuing marriage licenses
Parental rights
Tribal law
Local laws prior to Obergefell v. Hodges
Debate
Support
Role of social media
Opposition
Politicians and media figures
Studies
Adolescent attempted suicide
Economic impact on same-sex couples
Economic impact on the state and federal governments
Mental health
Physical health
In popular culture
Marriage statistics
Case law
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
2010s
Challenges to DOMA Section 3
California Proposition 8
Same-sex marriage rights
Public opinion
See also
Legislation
Miscellaneous
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links

Content: History of same-sex marriage in the United States
See also: Timeline of same-sex marriage in the United States
A newlywed same-sex couple celebrate their marriage in the United States. The history of same-sex marriage in the United States dates from the early 1970s, when the first lawsuits seeking legal recognition of same-sex relationships brought the question of civil marriage rights and benefits for same-sex couples to public attention, though they proved unsuccessful. The subject became increasingly prominent in U.S. politics following the 1993 Hawaii Supreme Court decision in Baehr v. Miike that suggested the possibility that the state's prohibition might be unconstitutional. That decision was met by actions at both the federal and state level to restrict marriage to male-female couples, notably the enactment at the federal level of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). On May 17, 2004, Massachusetts became the first U.S. state and the sixth jurisdiction in the world to legalize same-sex marriage following the Supreme Judicial Court 's decision in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health six months earlier. Just as with the Hawaii decision, the legalization of same-sex marriage in Massachusetts provoked a reaction from opponents that resulted in further legal restrictions being written into state statutes and constitutions. The movement to obtain marriage rights for same-sex couples expanded steadily from that time until in late 2014 lawsuits had been brought in every state that still denied marriage licenses to same-sex couples. By late 2014, same-sex marriage had become legal in states that contained more than 70% of the United States population. In some jurisdictions, legalization came through the action of state courts or the enactment of state legislation.