Nevada Gay Marriage History

Here at Manplay.com, you can learn everything you need to know about Nevada gay marriage. We don’t just connect you to local hotties, we also give you a chance to expand your knowledge and wisdom about gay marriage rights in the United States. If you thought you knew everything that there was to know about gay marriage in Nevada or even in Kentucky, you need to think and look again. Gay marriage rights are not just a simple battle of idealism, but a battle for human rights. Many opposition figures are unaware of what marriage rights bring to the table in life. Here at Manplay.com, you can learn everything you need to know about gay marriage and all it takes is a click here or there to learn.

An Overview Of Gay Marriage In Nevada

Gay marriage in Nevada has been legal since 2014 when it was ruled unconstitutional to ban it. The campaign for Nevada gay marriage didn’t come without its battles. Typically straight couples enjoy benefits such as work benefits, insurance coverage and so on. Gay couples could not enjoy these simple aspects of life because of a law that determined their choice of sexual orientation did not grant them the right to have the status of married. More often than not, many gay couples who were in domestic partnerships were unable to file their income tax properly or legally without bureaucratic headaches and some maneuvering. Nevada recognized same-sex unions in 2009 and gay couples were granted the same rights as straight couples. Manplay.com wants you to be able to connect to other hotties like you, but you can also learn a little about the road to legalizing Nevada gay marriage.

The Nevada Domestic Partnership Act

On the heels of Republican George Bush’s election in 2000, when Conservative shockwaves guided lawmakers throughout the United States, Nevada passed a conservative law that banned same-sex marriage in the state. However in 2009, openly gay Senator David Parks sponsored a bill that would be able to grant same-sex couples the same opportunities as straight married couples. Though the bill did make it impossible for domestic partners to receive benefits from their spouse. It was a shaky bill, but it offered hope on the road to legalize Nevada gay marriage. At first, the bill was vetoed by the Governor. He believed that he was doing democracy a favor when he referred to voters. Soon the State Assembly overrode his voted against his veto. On October 1 2009, the law took effect and it granted gay couples the chance to have domestic relationships as well as opposite sex couples. It was called The Domestic Partnership Responsibilities Act and it provided many of the same benefits for gay couples, that straight couples would enjoy. However, this act only applied statewide and did not take effect on a Federal level. This all changed in 2013, when it was ruled that The Domestic Partnership Act was still not fully constitutional and needed to ensure that health benefits and child benefits could apply to gay couples.

Nevada Gay Marriage Gets A Victory

In 2012, a case, Sevcik v. Sandoval went to the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada. This aimed to argue that gay marriage should be legalized. The lawsuit argued that gay marriage was a historic institution that should be afforded to gay couples. The key debate for the lawsuit was the equal protection ruling, in which gay couples should and would receive equal protection. However, the Judge on the case, Robert C. Jones made the claim that the traditional form of marriage should be between a man and woman. Jones argued that maintaining the classic form of opposite sex marriage would be in the state’s best interests. This proved to be another hurdle for gay marriage activists. The inability for gay couples all over the United States to live a life of equality was the force behind many of these arguments. Some of the rights of the Nevada Domestic Partnership Act included some of the following benefits: hospital visitation, health care decision rights, inheritance rights, cemetery plot rights, testimonial privileges, property taxes, adoption, insurance rights and employment benefits. Now many of these aspects of the Partnership Act were positive, however the main point of each lawsuit against the state, was aiming to determine and legitimize the claim that banning gay marriage was illegal and unconstitutional. Even though rights were granted to gay couples through this act, like we said before, it could not be applied on a federal level or in any other state. If a Nevada gay couple had been in a domestic partnership and ended up moving to somewhere where gay civil unions were not recognized, there would be no federal leg up if the couple aimed to apply for some of the benefits that we outlined above. This is why the battle for gay marriage rights were so important, it ensured equal protection.

Nevada Gay Marriage Becomes Legal

Then in 2014, Governor Sandoval made the claim that the ban on gay marriage could be defended and should not be defended. Nevada’s ban on gay marriage essentially violated gay couple’s fourteenth amendment right of equal protection. This was an argument that virtually all lawsuits across the country used and it proved to be a strong case to ensure that gay couples could receive the same rights and the same benefits that straight couples had. Nevada’s court also determined that discriminating against gay couples based on their sexual orientation was against the law and violation of human rights. On October 9th 2014, James Mahan declared that Nevada gay marriage was legal and soon after his ruling, gay couples across the state were able to get marriage licenses. This proved to be a victory for gay rights activists in Nevada.

Some Statistics On Nevada Gay Marriage

Nevada is a more progressive state with an enormous tourist population from all over the world. One would imagine that many residents of the state would be more in favour of legalizing gay marriage. According to a Public Policy Poll that was geared towards Nevada voters, found that approximately 45% supported gay marriage with 44% opposing it. Despite both support and opposition percentages are close, it goes to show that at least a majority of the state supports gay marriage. There are at least 7,140 gay couples in Nevada. 20% of gay couples in Nevada are raising children. Approximately 69% of gay couples are white, 3% of black, 20% are latino and the other 8% is made up of other ethnicities. These are some interesting figures that show the more liberal side of living in the state.

The Current And Future Status Of Nevada Gay Marriage

It seems that Nevada gay marriage is here to stay, thanks to Judge Mahan’s ruling in 2014, but also the June 2015 ruling, the Supreme Court, that banning gay marriage was unconstitutional. This meant that the Federal Government would no recognize gay marriage throughout the country. By passing this law, it ensured that gay couples would be able to be protected by the federal government and not just there local state government. It meant rules about heath benefits, spousal benefits and child care could and would extend nationwide. There would be no limitations on not being granted equal rights and gay couples would not be barred from simply living life in the same way a straight couple would live. It is interesting to note how in the early 2000s, gay rights activists were faced with many states amending their constitution and determining that marriage was only between a man and a woman. Many conservative lawmakers imagined that this amendment would stop the gay marriage debate, but it only added fuel to the fire for gay rights activists, because it guaranteed that they could argue that banning gay marriage was unconstitutional and did not offer some basic rights that any American citizen could afford.

The biggest benefit of legalizing gay marriage was equal rights for gay couples all across the United States. One of the facts that is always forgotten when it comes to gay marriage is economics. Many conservative lawmakers forget that gay marriage has a very positive effect on the economy and that the benefits of gay marriage should not be overlooked from an economic standpoint.

Some External Links About Nevada Gay Marriage

Here are a few online destinations about Nevada gay marriage that include information about your rights in marriage and also some gay-friendly places that can help you get a foothold with information about same sex marriage.

1. EnGayged.com’s Listing of Gay-Friendly Wedding Vendors In Nevada

2. EnGayged.com’s Listing Of Nevada Officiants Who Can Offer Same Sex Couples Service

3. Information On Applying For Nevada’s Marriage Licenses

4. The Nevada Chapter Of The ACLU

5. PurpleUnion.com’s Listing For The Countless Gay Wedding Vendors In Nevada