(ZENIT News / Washington, DC, 24.06.2024).- Over the last decades, the acceptance of same-sex unions in the United States, under the name of “marriage,” has increased notably. According to a recent Gallup poll, more than two-thirds of Americans (69%) think that marriage between same-sex couples should be legal, and 64% think that homosexual and lesbian relations are morally acceptable.
Support of same-sex unions under the name “marriage” has been rising since the decades of the 1990s. In 1996, when Gallup carried out the first survey on the topic, only 27% of Americans supported the legalization of such unions, whereas 68% were opposed. However, by 2004 support had increased to 42% and in 2011 it surpassed 50% for the first time. Since 2017, this support has remained consistently above 60%.
Differences According to Parties
Opinions on marriage between same-sex couples varied significantly according to political affiliation. Currently, 83% of Democrats and 74% of Independents are in favour of its legalization, as opposed to 46% of Republicans. Despite these differences, there has been a general increase in its support between all groups over time. It’s interesting to note that, although its support among Republicans reached 55% in a few years, in the last two years it has fallen under 50%.
Assessment of the Morality of Relations between Same-Sex Individuals
The perception of the morality of homosexual relations has also changed notably. Since 2010, the majority of Americans consider these relations as morally acceptable. In the last survey, 64% of adults expressed this opinion. As with same-sex marriage, there is a marked partisan difference: 81% of Democrats and 68% of Independents believe that homosexual relations are morally acceptable, as compared with only 40% of Republicans.
Stabilization of Support and Future Perspectives
Although the figures of support of same-sex marriage and moral acceptance of homosexual relations remain high, over the last years a stabilization has been observed. This is due in part to a stabilization in the support of Democrats and Independents, whereas among Republicans there has been a slight decrease of support.
Looking to the future, it’s probable that the support of same-sex marriages and the morality of homosexual relations will continue growing, especially in the measure that the younger generations, who show greater support for these issues, become the demographic majority. Young Americans are consistently more prone than their older counterparts to favour legal marriage between same-sex individuals and to regard these relations as morally acceptable.
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