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Start Here: The Marriage Basics

Why does Marriage Matter? Marriage (pdf) provides tangible and intangible security, clarity, and respect to committed couples and their families. Why shouldn't we protect all kids, support all families, and treat all Americans equally? Ending the exclusion of same-sex couples and their families from marriage will help families and harm no one.

Equally important, as defined by the United States Supreme Court, "The freedom to marry has long been recognized as one of the vital personal rights essential to the orderly pursuit of happiness by free men." Every American deserves fair treatment under the law and the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, the very rights our country was founded on.

 

Use the topics below to learn more about why the freedom to marry matters.

Short Answers to Big Questions

Some basic questions and answers to get you started.

Protections & Responsibilities of Marriage

There are over 1,100 rights, benefits and responsibilities conferred on married couples by the federal government including access to health care, parenting and immigration rights, social security, veterans and survivor benefits, and transfer of property—and that doesn't include state and local law, and employers, or the intangible security, dignity, and meaning that comes with marriage.

History & Timeline of Marriage

This is not the first time our country has had this kind of conversation about marriage. Throughout our history, marriage has often been a battleground on which larger questions have been contested. To understand the current landscape of the movement towards marriage equality, it's helpful to know just a bit of its history.

Marriage versus Civil Unions, Domestic Partnerships, Etc.

Rather than ending marriage discrimination outright—the only way to provide equality—an increasing number of states are creating a parallel mechanism either with civil unions, domestic partnerships or some lesser package of protections and responsibilities. While these mechanisms do provide same-sex couples with important responsibilities and protections previously withheld, we are constantly witnessing the shortcomings of such separate and unequal institutions.

Divorce & Splitting Up

Relationships between people of the same sex are subject to the same challenges and pressures as all relationships. Unfortunately, without the freedom to marry, divorce and splitting up for same-sex couples can be a huge legal mess. Disconnect between state laws and federal laws make these hard situations even more challenging.

Digging Deeper: How to Advance the Freedom to Marry

Do you think you've got a handle on the basic issues involved in the fight for the freedom to marry? Learn more about the status, strategy, and flashpoints ahead in this movement, and how to get involved.

Why Marriage Matters

Called "the most important gay-marriage primer ever written" by Time Out New York, this book, written by Civil Rights attorney and Freedom to Marry founder Evan Wolfson, "should be required reading" according to The Advocate.

Evan Wolfson

Called "the Thurgood Marshall of the gay rights movement" by The American Lawyer, Evan Wolfson has been on the front lines in the battle for the freedom to marry for the past twenty years. Read his biography, speeches and publications, watch his debates, and see where he's traveling to next.

Resources

View all of Freedom to Marry's publications which are available for download and rebranding by anyone interested.