NEW YORK (AP) - An increasing majority of Americans favors allowing same-sex couples to obtain most of the same rights as married straight couples, but only 39 percent support legalization of same-sex marriage, according to a poll released Friday.
The Pew Research Center said support for civil unions has risen to 57 percent, up from 54 percent a year ago and 45 percent when the question was first asked by Pew in 2003.
Views on legalizing same-sex marriage remained almost unchanged from last year, with 53 percent opposed and 39 percent in favor, the center said.
Supporters of same-sex marriage were divided over the best way to pursue legalization, according to the survey. Forty-five percent of them favored pushing hard to legalize it as soon as possible, while 42 percent said pushing too hard for swift legalization might trigger a backlash against gays and lesbians.
There was more support for same-sex marriage among women, adults under 30 and college-educated people than there was among men, older adults and those who did not attend college.
Asked about homosexual behavior, 49 percent said it is morally wrong, 9 percent said it is morally acceptable and 35 percent said it is not a moral issue.
The telephone survey of 4,013 adults was conducted in August. The margin of error for the full sample was 2 percentage points.
Same-sex marriage is legal in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa and Vermont, and will start in New Hampshire in January. A referendum in Maine on Nov. 3 will determine the fate of a same-sex marriage bill passed by the Legislature in May, and the city council in Washington, D.C., is expected to approve same-sex marriage soon.
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Call you what you want but
Call you what you want but it should not be the same as a man and women call me what you want its just not right ! That being said same sex unions should also enjoy everything offered to a man and women in a marriage ! We as a country have become to politically correct ! Just because I dont agree with something does not mean I hate the other side ! Live and let live!!
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Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.I continue to object to the
I continue to object to the term "legalize" to refer to changing the definition of a common word. It makes it sound as if "same sex marriage" were illegal, like possession of marijuana, and could land one in jail if one were caught doing it. But nobody was ever arrested for committing "same sex marriage," since there is no such thing: it is precluded not by law but by the common meanings of the words. In fact the problem with "same sex marriage" is not that it is illegal, but that it is a contradiction in terms. There are always people who want to murder the English language, and there is no law against doing that either--but it isn't like wanting to do something illegal.
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