Thursday, November 09, 2006

Same sex marriage bans pass in seven of eight states.

The count is still going on, but it appears Arizona was the only state to reject a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage yesterday. Still, there is no reason to be disheartened.

Althought the ban was passed in South Dakota, South Carolina, Wisconsin, Tennessee, Colorado and Virginia, it was not by an overwhelming margin. Look at the numbers.

(in percents, for ban/against ban)
Arizona: 49 / 51
Colorado: 56 / 44
South Carolina: 78/ 22
South Dakota: 52 / 48
Tennessee: 81 / 19
Virginia: 57 / 43
Wisconsin: 59 / 41

Average: 61.7 / 38.3

Take the Bible-belt states of Tennessee and South Carolina out of the mix and the numbers are even tighter.

Average: 54.6 / 45.4

Pretty close to an even split.

What does this mean? Though the American people may not yet be ready to hear same-sex couples say 'I Do', they are not ready to write discrimination into their constitutions. While this is not necessarily a giant leap for homo-kind, it is a small step toward equality.

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