Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Hot on Facebook
Man Tries to Order Priciest Starbucks Drink Ever Total cost: $23.60 »

Gay-Marriage Ruling Belies Iowa's 'Bumpkin' Image

By Will McCahill,  Newser Staff

Posted Apr 10, 2009 4:48 PM CDT

(Newser) – No doubt you snobby big-city, coastal types did a double-take last week when Iowa legalized same-sex marriage, but the state has a long tradition of avant-garde social positions, Rex Huppke writes in the Chicago Tribune. Its university was the first to admit women, it allowed mixed-race marriages 100 years before the Supreme Court OK'd them, and its caucuses put Barack Obama on the path to history.

“You don’t need a passport to cross the Hudson River, but many think you do,” says University of Iowa professor Linda Kerber, a native New Yorker who’s also lived in California. “These New Yorkers who say ‘Iowa? What?’, they’re being very provincial. They need a passport to go to France, and they go to France a lot more than they go to Iowa.”

We knew we could count on Iowa's leadership on civil rights issues, one gay-rights advocate said of last week's decision to legalize gay marriage.
"We knew we could count on Iowa's leadership on civil rights issues," one gay-rights advocate said of last week's decision to legalize gay marriage.   (AP Photo)
Savannah Cook of Newton, Iowa, shows her support at a large rally of citizens showing their support of the Iowa Supreme Court's decision to legalized same-sex marriage last week.
Savannah Cook of Newton, Iowa, shows her support at a large rally of citizens showing their support of the Iowa Supreme Court's decision to legalized same-sex marriage last week.   (AP Photo)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

When all is said and done, we believe the only lasting question about today's events will be why it took us so long. - Iowa Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal and House Speaker Pat Murphy

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
To report an error on this story, notify our editors.
A snapshot of the day's best news stories.
 
COMMENTS
Be the first to comment on this story.

More Newser Stories

Gingrich Tells Gay Iowan to Vote for Obama

Bachmann: Dump Gay Marriage in Iowa

Viral Video Teen: Gay Suicides Were 'Wake-Up Call'

Gay Marriage Foes Vow to Oust Iowa Judges

'Midwest Diva' Aims to Be Next Britney


NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   Betty Confidential   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   Fark   |   Timelines   |   The Frisky   |   Geek Sugar   |   NewsOne