Is Legalized Gay Marriage Inevitable? Don’t Be So Sure
Matthew Cooper of The Atlantic contemplates the seeming inevitability of the legalization of same-sex marriage. Despite the national momentum in support of gay marriage today, he writes, “It’s worth remembering that social movements are sometimes stopped, like post-Civil War Reconstruction, and for those of a certain generation, the once-invincible Equal Rights Amendment to the Constitution.” Cooper writes, “Much of the credit for stopping the ERA goes to Phyllis Schlafly, the social-conservative activist.” He continues, “Schlafly’s success doesn’t mean that gay marriage isn’t on the march. It’s an object lesson that movements can be halted, at least for a time.”