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When I was growing up in Iowa, the state's marketing slogan was "Iowa, you make me smile." As disgruntled high schoolers, my friends and I would use the phrase sarcastically... But today, it's totally appropriate. Because this morning the Iowa Supreme Court ruled in favor of marriage equality!
For 10 years, Iowa has had a law on the books defining marriage as "between a man and a woman," and the court unanimously ruled that that statute violates the equal protection clause of the state constitution. The Supreme Court decision comes after a district court ruled the marriage ban unconstitutional in 2007, the same year the state legislature passed a law banning discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
Richard Socarides, a former senior adviser to President Bill Clinton on gay civil rights, said today's decision could set the stage for other states. Socarides was was a senior political assistant for Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin in the early 1990s."I think it's significant because Iowa is considered a Midwest sate in the mainstream of American thought," Socarides said. "Unlike states on the coasts, there's nothing more American than Iowa. As they say during the presidential caucuses, 'As Iowa goes, so goes the nation.'"
This is exactly what the right wing is afraid of. I'm tentatively betting on a bigger national anti-gay uproar in response to the Iowa decision than there was after California or Massachusetts. After all, it's a bit more difficult for conservatives to spin this as crazy decision by "activist judges" in an outlier, coastal, liberal state. Unsurprisingly, the lobbying for an anti-gay marriage amendment to the state constitution has already begun.
Today, though, it's nice to be from Iowa. Go middle America! I am gonna put on some Leslie Hall and do a little Midwest Diva dance to celebrate.
UPDATE: More from Jezebel, Shakesville, Harpyness, Feministe, Yglesias, Pandagon, and Bilerico.
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YAY
This was exactly my immediate response!
It's great to see states that aren't immediately thought of as "forward-thinking" making changes to give basic rights to EVERYONE.
What a victory!
Love it! I've always thought Iowa is cooler than it gets credit for, and I'm glad to see it stepping up. What a good day.
Iowa? Jeez, who's next, Utah? ;-)
i love iowa! i have so much midwest pride right now. and leslie and the lys makes it so much easier to do that. thanks for giving her some publicity too!
Iowa ok'd it before Illinois? I'm disappointed with my state now...
Guess this goes to show you can't underestimate anybody.
Iowa didn't approve it, their court did. I sadly suspect that if this were put to popular vote, it would lose just like in CA.
I think it would depend on the area. I was born in Iowa and attend an Iowa college, and I know a huge number of people are celebrating today's events. I really do think it's an example of a generational thing as well.
It's not always the case, but more often than not the people who are against it are from an older, more conservative position. In fact, one of my classes (a social issues class) had a debate over whether or not gay marriage should be legalized. Out of a 35+ class, only 2 people believed it should be banned, and those people voted that way because they believed churches shouldn't be forced into it, not because they were opposed to the idea of gay marriage itself. I was surprised that we actually had very little to debate about.
Really, there are some Iowans against this, but there are quite a few that are in support of it and celebrating today-- more than even I had expected. :)
Sorry, I misread you comment slightly, bifemmefatale. But I'll leave there anyway since it's related.
By a much bigger margin than in Cali. Fortunately the House and Senate leaders don't seem inclined to let it come to a popular vote.
I'm from the East Cost but living in rural Wisconsin for a job. I've felt an underlying spirit of independence and tolerance here, even among people who intentify as "moderate" or "conservative."
I'm surprised, honestly, by how many people have told me that they're working on their farm every day of the year, and simply don't CARE what two people are doing in their own homes, with their own lives. They don't care about the "definition of marriage" business or if the law of government is the same as the law of the Bible. They just want self-sustaining lives, and want that for others, too.
There IS hope for the Midwest, I tell you...
It can be surprising, so I understand where you're coming from, but there's long been an undercurrent of that kind of attitude in a lot of Midwestern states. The area is more varied than a lot of people know.
Echoing Linnaeus, Iowa isn't the Bible belt. Sure, it's conservative in a lot of ways. But the culture there is veeeeerrrry different from, say, Utah even.
Exactly!
More Midwest love! Nice job, Iowa Supreme Court...now I can only hope this becomes a trend and other states - including the one I live in now - change their minds and follow suit.
Unsurprisingly, the lobbying for an anti-gay marriage amendment to the state constitution has already begun.
Yes, but it will be more difficult to do in Iowa than in other states. Iowa doesn't have an initiative process, so anti-marriage equality folks can't pull a Prop 8. The Iowa legislature would have to approve an amendment in successive legislative sessions and then submit it to voters as a referendum. Not saying that means all is safe, but that's a high bar to overcome.
This is true... I read in one article that if we did decide to pass a gay marriage ban (which we damn well better not!), it wouldn't be able to come into effect until sometime like 2012. I may be wrong on the exact date, but I was definitely under the impression that it would take awhile.
I am so excited! 47 more states to go!! This has completely made my day :) My family and I lived in IA for two years when I was in Kindergarten & 1st grade and I loved it there & today I'm extra happy to say I was once an Iowa resident.
yay! I'm proud to be a Midwesterner today! And I get that there might be some surprise about this... there are conservative people/groups here, sure. But there are also many liberals -- Iowa, Minnesota, & Wisconsin all tend to go BLUE in elections. So as a native of the Upper Midwest, I'm proud of that and I'm proud of what happened in Iowa today. :)
Here's to hoping Minnesota is next. :)
IOWA?! that's out of left field.
cool.
Iowa seems so random, but good for them!! I am so happy for this. This is the best queer week ever!
http://stuffqueerpeopleneedtoknow.wordpress.com/
I grew up in Indiana and have lived in Chicago for the past four years. I thought it was just being in a bigger city, but IL in general is vastly more lefty than Indiana. I still have hope for my home state, but there is a different Midwestern ethos there.
Hooroo Iowa!
Awesome.
Having been born and bred in Iowa, I can definitely say I am proud of my state today! Indeed, I know many people across campus are celebrating. 47 more states to go!
While this is tremendous news, this quote is really disconcerting: "Unlike states on the coasts, there's nothing more American than Iowa." This is the same rhetoric Sarah Palin used to accuse we coast-dwellers of not being American, and it's honestly a little exasperating.
Word. I don't see how living in one part of America makes you any more or less American than someone living in a different region of the country.
Terrific news, obviously.
However, what the fuck is wrong with Richard Socarides? I'm talking about this quote from him:
"Unlike states on the coasts, there's nothing more American than Iowa."
Way to perpetuate that Palin-pushed, ultra-nationalistic notion that a liberal state is an un-American one. Ugh.
jinx!
I saw this in my RSS and seriously thought it was an April Fools' post from feministing that I'd somehow missed until now. What a pleasant surprise!
I live in a city in Iowa that has a large GLBTQ community, so this makes sense for where I live, but most of Iowa is rural...I suspect this might be overturned before long. HOWEVER, maybe it won't!
For now, it's time to party! Too bad I have to go to work :(
OMG!!! I'm from the Midwest (Kansas to be exact) and I didn't expect to see gay marriage in the Midwest so soon.
I love being an Iowan today!! :-)
And did you take a look at even part of the 69-page decision!? It is amazing...they really tore apart ALL the stupid reasons ever given for the ban, including "best interests of children" and "religion". It was eloquent and right on.
(joins Ann in the Midwest Diva Dance)
Yay IOWA!! For the first time ever, I'm actually PROUD to be an IOWAN! This is such great news!! If only I had a girlfriend to marry!! :)
So proud of the state that I still consider home after so many years away! My current (Southern) state has a long way to go. I always loved Iowa for its stubborn independence.
As a Michigander expatriated to the East Coast, I'm feeling an incredible surge of Midwest pride right now. I'm reminded of when I was in The Music Man as a little girl... "You really ought to give Iowa a try..."
It's also worth noting that IOWA is the FIRST state whose court overturned the gay marriage ban by a UNANIMOUS ruling. Even ultra-liberal Massachusetts only did it by one vote...
Personally, I feel like this is a bigger victory than the previous ones, because as was pointed out in the article, it's hard to call this just a blue-state phenomenon now. Iowa chose Huckabee in the primaries, for pete's sake. This is a HUGE victory to gay rights activists in red- and swing-states and a HUGE blow to homophobes across the country. If anything, it's a sign of the gradual cultural shift that is eventually going to win the fight for gay equality.
This article from The New Republic: http://blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/the_plank/archive/2009/04/03/gay-marriage-in-iowa.aspx explains more of why the ruling by the Iowa Supreme Court is so much more significant than past ones.
Excellent. I hope it lasts.
I should have wished for world peace and rich girlfriend too.
Statement by Iowa Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal, D-Council Bluffs, and House Speaker Pat Murphy, D-Dubuque:
"Thanks to today’s decision, Iowa continues to be a leader in guaranteeing all of our citizens’ equal rights.
The court has ruled today that when two Iowans promise to share their lives together, state law will respect that commitment, regardless of whether the couple is gay or straight.
When all is said and done, we believe the only lasting question about today’s events will be why it took us so long. It is a tough question to answer because treating everyone fairly is really a matter of Iowa common sense and Iowa common decency.
Today, the Iowa Supreme Court has reaffirmed those Iowa values by ruling that gay and lesbian Iowans have all the same rights and responsibilities of citizenship as any other Iowan.
Iowa has always been a leader in the area of civil rights."
I'm from IA too, and am also doing a celebratory dance!
I encourage everyone who is GLBTQ to be open and share your story with as many people as possible (as long as you feel safe). Personally knowing someone who is queer makes a big difference. I came out to my extended family, most of whom live in IA, a few years ago. No big parades or speeches, just some discomfort. But since then, I've heard my rural, religous cousins tell their friends to not use "gay" as an insult. An aunt has told her friends that gays are people like everyone else.
And both of my grandmas, in their 70s, came to my commitment ceremony. They even told their friends what they were doing, and said they wished I was able to marry my same-sex partner. Now that's change. That's amazing. If my family living in IA can accept me, there's hope. 47 more to go!