Sunday, August 22, 2010

Slowly Filling Bucket of SSM Acceptance

We impatient sorts can smile a bit looking at the NYT poll analysis of the continuing acceptance of same-sex marriage. A feature today amalgamates various polls to show a steady rise in support for SSM, from 45% to just over 50% depending how the source.

Three Columbia University political science profs note this tend is sure to continue. They mention that three biggies — California, New York and New Jersey — have shifted from just less than half the public supporting SSM to over half...within the past two years. They add that support climbed "in all states, even in relatively conservative places like Wyoming and Kentucky. Only Utah is till below where national support stood in 1996."

Anti-gay and anti-marriage equality types love to cling to and point at the four-fifths of the states who panic passed DOMA-style laws or amendments. In contrast, the current shift follows the dying of the old guard and the increase of more under-30 voters, who support equality. The professors state this will only continue, tipping more states above 50% SSM support.

Now if we only had an administration in D.C. with the guts to tackle DOMA and DADT. Obama and Congressional Dems still seem too cowardly to deal with these and other inequalities at mid-term elections and looking ahead to 2012.

As the rest of the first world marches happily by the more socially conservative United States, it looks like voters are not all that far behind anymore.

Equality Poddy: Over at Left Ahead, we'll hit this topic as well as other LGBT-related ones when we have the new executive director of MassEquality join us. Kara Suffredini starts just after Labor Day and chats with on at 2:30 PM Eastern the next week. You can catch it live then here or go to Left Ahead later to download or listen.

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