The first two weeks of April, 2009, have seen unbelievable advancement of gay rights in a breathtaking way.
Not only have Iowa and Vermont been added to the list of states that allow gay marriage, but also the following has occurred.Â
New York is moving in the same direction on gay marriage, as are New Hampshire, New Jersey and Maine. Additionally, top retired military brass have come out in favor of ending the "don’t ask, don’t tell" policy in the armed forces. Also, the campaign manager of the McCain Presidential run in 2008, Steve Schmidt, who is not gay, has called on the Republican party to cease its opposition to gay marriage and other areas of gay rights, and to point out that in his mind gay rights are an unfulfilled area of human rights. Even more shocking is that Cindy and Meaghan McCain, wife and daughter of the Presidential candidate, are both endorsing the same belief and are attending this weekend the meeting of the Log Cabin Republicans!
There are many struggles and obstacles still to face, of course, and never will everyone accept the changes that are coming, but that is not important. What is important is that law and justice move in that direction, and just as there are people who oppose civil rights and interracial marriage even today, it is obvious that there will always be a resentful minority that will continue to hold prejudiced views on gay rights. But the promising aspect is that the younger generation of Americans, who will inherit the country in the future, are overwhelmingly in favor of change in the treatment of gay Americans. So time and adaptation to change will bring about in the next couple of decades the full recognition of the rights of a courageous group that has long suffered from discrimination, much of the time in silence.