Lessons from the first states to grapple with gay marriage legislation.

In-depth interviews examine the role of the law in the lives of LGBT parents The decision to have a child is seldom a simple one, often fraught with complexities regarding emotional readiness, finances, marital status, and compatibility with life and career goals. Rarely, though, do individuals consider the role of the law in facilitating or inhibiting their ability to have a child or to parent. For LGBT individuals, however, parenting is saturated with legality - including the initial decision of whether to have a child, how to have a child, whether one's relationship with their child will be recognized, and everyday acts of parenting. Through interviews with 137 LGBT parents, Amanda K. Baumle and D'Lane R. Compton examine the role of the law in the lives of LGBT parents and how individuals use the law when making decisions about family formation or parenting. Baumle and Compton explore the ways in which LGBT parents participate in the process of constructing legality through accepting, modifying, or rejecting legal meanings about their families. They conclude that legality is constructed through a complex interplay of legal context, social networks, individual characteristics, and familial desires. Ultimately, the stories of LGBT parents in this book reflect a rich and varied relationship between the law, the state, and the private family goals of individuals.

Provides an overview of issues related to gay rights, including history, terminology, biographical information on important individuals, and a complete annotated bibliography.

Writing in part for secular humanists, non-Christians, and ex-Christians, Wallace locates the beginning of religious vilification of LBGTQ Americans: these attacks recycle earlier, equally reactionary political opposition to racial desegregation and equal rights for women. Then, step by step, she lays out three major flaws in the religious argument against gay marriage. First, it derives from Plato and Greco-Roman sexual anxieties, not from Jesus. Second, opposition to gay marriage takes Bible verses out of context, ignoring their roots in Iron Age biology, sexual politics in the classic era, and pagan ritual practices. Third and most importantly, this opposition reflects an inadequate moral theology based on a denial of contemporary science and social science. Then and only then does she offer her own concept of marriage as a morally rooted, creative process, laying out common ground easily shared by Christian humanists and secular humanists alike. Her nimble, accessible account, richly leavened by personal stories, will facilitate new conversations and alliances among all those, believers and nonbelievers alike, who affirm the moral dignity of gay marriage.

DIVAn assessment, by a distinguished panel of experts, on the impact of pragmatism on contemporary thought./div

Pew Research Center reports that there is growing support across generations for same-sex marriage. Support in America is up from 37 percent in 2009 to 57 percent in 2015. A majority of Caucasian people, nearly 59 percent, support same-sex marriage, while 56 percent of Hispanics and Latinos and 41 percent of African Americans support gay marriage. This compelling edition discusses the divisive topic of gay marriage, examining opinions on both sides of the issue. The book details the history and evolution of gay rights in the United States, its legality, and resulting cultural implications.

This work is the only complete compilation of polls taken by the Gallup Organization, the world's most reliable and widely quoted research firm, in calendar year 2013. It is an invaluable tool for ascertaining the pulse of American public opinion as it evolves over the course of a given year, and—over time—documents changing public perceptions of crucial political, economic, and societal issues. It is a necessity for any social science research.

With the increase in states legalizing marijuana, understanding the debate about marijuana is more important than ever. Learn about the movement to legalize, the arguments on each side, and what it means for patients, state economies, and legal systems. Examine issues including the history of the movement toward legalization in the United States, efforts toward legalization around the globe, the risks/benefits of marijuana use, how it works in the body, safety regulations, economic impact of legalization, problems surrounding patchwork legalization across the nation, and the dark side of marijuana: addiction.

This work is the only complete compilation of polls taken by the Gallup Organization, the world's most reliable and widely quoted research firm. It is an invaluable tool for ascertaining the pulse of American public opinion in a certain year, as well as for documenting changing perceptions over time of crucial core issues (such as women's rights and health care). It is necessary for all social science research. More than just a collection of polls, The Gallup Poll offers in-depth commentary and analysis, placing current topics in a readable, historical context. Survey results are given in a easy-to-use form. Breakdowns by sex, age, race, level of education, and other factors enable the reader to grasp major issues quickly.