On October 21st, New Jersey become the 14th state to legalize gay marriage. Christie vetoed this bill the first time it showed up on his desk last winter. The Republican Governor put up a good fight before dropping his appeal from New Jersey supreme court, the supreme court overruled Christie’s appeal.

New Jersey did have civil unions before it upgraded to marriage, which gave people some of the rights the married people had. One difference is that civil unions differ from state to state, along with federal and state benefits. Some of the benefits gay and lesbian couples do not get, according to the GLAD document “Civil Marriage v. Civil Union What’s the difference?” are the following: “legal protections and responsibilities from the federal government, including the right to take leave from work to care for a family member, the right to sponsor a spouse for immigration purposes, and Social Security survivor benefits that can make a difference between old age in poverty and old age in security.” These are just a few privileges married people have over couples with civil unions.

There are 16 states that allow gay marriage: California, Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont. The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community still has a long way to go, but it has made wonderful strides. Acceptance is becoming more frequent in the states. After acceptance comes equality.