The Utah ruling was one of many legal and political victories for homosexual or gay rights across the nation in . The number of states where same-sex marriage is legal rose to 17, plus the District of Columbia.
Public opinion surveys show a growing majority of Americans support the right of gay people to marry.
Two months ago, the Justice Department told its employees to give same-sex couples the same rights as other couples. Attorney General Eric Holder announced that his office will give people in same-sex marriages the same privileges, protections and rights as opposite-sex marriages under federal law. This means same-sex couples will no longer be dealt with differently in federal courts and will have the same federal assistance as other couples.
Also in February, the state government in Nevada decided to stop supporting a ban on same-sex marriage. The governor of Nevada said he believed the states position would not be accepted by a judge as constitutional. Voters in Nevada approved the ban 12 years ago.
Officials in other states have decided against defending their bans on same-sex marriage. They believe federal judges will not accept their arguments that the laws are permitted under the Constitution.
In Virginia, a federal judge cancelled a state law banning same-sex marriages. Virginia voters approved a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage in . The judge said such a ban was just as unconstitutional as were laws banning interracial marriages. Those laws were cancelled 50 years ago.
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