Gay rights advocates celebrated across the nation yesterday, when the Vermont legislature overrode the Governor’s veto and legalized same-sex marriage.
Those celebrations, however, may be curtailed by news that the lawmakers’ decision — and a Supreme Court ruling in Iowa — have only reinvigorated opponents of gay nuptials. The National Organization for Marriage, which believes marriage should remain between a man and a woman, vowed yesterday to take a tougher stand in other states.
The group’s executive director, Brian Brown, told the New York Times that he and his allies planned to start airing commercials across the country that stress the importance of maintaining traditional definitions of marriage.
Yesterday’s measure in Vermont coincided with an equally important decision in Washington DC. The district’s council voted to recognize gay marriages performed elsewhere. Currently four states — Connecticut, Massachusetts, Iowa and Vermont — allow same-sex couples to tie the knot. The council’s vote will require Congressional approval, which means the relatively localized debates will take on a whole new life across the nation.
Some say the Culture Wars are over, but we have a feeling they’re about to flair once again.
