Has Seeing Gay Marriages Change the Minds of Utah Residents?

HRC and other organizations have long argued that coming out can be the most powerful act of advocacy that one can undertake.  Once gays are no longer some faceless quantity but instead friends, family members, neighbors, etc., it becomes much more difficult to hold on to one's hate and bigotry.   New surveys in Utah suggest that perhaps the same phenomenon holds true with gay marriage.  People find it easy to oppose same sex marriage until they see living, breathing, normal looking same sex couples actually marrying and exhibiting joy and happiness - just like other couples getting married.   The Salt Lake Tribune looks at what's happening in Utah in the wake of the December 20, 2013, court ruling striking down Utah's gay marriage bans.  Here are story highlights:

A new poll for The Salt Lake Tribune shows that Utahns’ views on same-sex couples’ relationships have dramatically shifted in the decade since voters amended the state’s constitution to prohibit them from receiving any legal recognition.

Residents are now evenly split on whether same-sex couples in Utah should be allowed to get state-issued marriage licences — 48 percent for and 48 percent against — and nearly three-fourths (72 percent) said same-sex couples should be allowed to form civil unions or domestic partnerships in lieu of marriage.

On one side: Paul, who lives at Sundance in Utah County and participated in the survey.

"I just don’t have any religious basis for why marriage should be between a man and a woman, and, personally, I don’t see that there is a meaningful difference between the rights of heterosexual couples as opposed to homosexual couples," the 24-year-old said in an interview. "I’ve never really understood the idea that two people should not be able to be married if they want to be."

And on the other: LaNae, 50, of Orem, who also took the survey.   "I believe that marriage is between a man and a woman," LaNae said. "That is what marriage means — a man, a woman and God.

 

The latest poll follows landmark decisions this year on marriage rights of same-sex couples by a federal judge in Utah as well as the U.S. Supreme Court.

Support for same-sex marriage was strongest among non-Mormons, people between ages 18 and 34 and those who described themselves as Democrats. Slightly more than a third of respondents (36 percent) said their views on same-sex marriage have shifted over time, something that was equally true of Mormons and non-Mormons. Overwhelmingly, people in both of those demographic categories said their views had become more accepting.

But perhaps in one surprise, the broad support for civil unions or domestic partnerships included 65 percent of respondents who said they were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Sixty-nine-year-old Mike, of American Fork, said he opposes marriage rights for same-sex couples but over time has come to believe civil unions should be an option. . . . .  "Years ago, I would have thought that homosexuality was an individual choice," said Mike, who is Mormon and came to his views during discussions through the years with friends who are gay. "I’ve come to conclude more and more that it’s not a choice, but something that is inborn and a lifelong attraction rather than something someone chooses. If people choose to live in a same-sex relationship, they should enjoy all the legal benefits that occur with a marriage, without calling it a marriage and still using that term for man-woman relationships."

Very interesting findings.  Moreover, I believe that something similar is happening in Virginia where now a slight majority of Virginians support gay marriage.  The message again is to live out and authentically.  It's the way to change hearts and minds.