Chart of the Day

Americans Are Changing Their Minds About Gay Marriage

Pew
Esther Zuckerman 4,266 Views Aug 2, 2012

 

As people flock to Chick-fil-A in opposition of gay marriage while Democrats are on their way to putting it on their party platform, take a note of these charts from the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, which displays how the country's opinions on the topic have morphed over time.

The graph above shows how in 2001 the percentage of people favoring legal gay marriage was far below those that opposed it —  57 percent to 35 percent. The gap widened until 2004, but since that it has been closing and this year, as we have noted before, for the first time more people are in favor of gay marriage than oppose it, 48 percent to 44 percent. 

But don't stop there. Pew also charts out more on the subject. For example, the current status of nationwide opinion has to do with age: support grows as with each generational change and millennials are more in favor of gay marriage than any other generation. Also explained: how religion, race, and political affiliation factor into support.  

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