Yesterday, Delaware, our first state, became the 11th state in the Union to permit same-sex marriages.  This recent development comes as the SCOTUS decision in the Hollingsworth v Perry case is expected in a few weeks.

The Democratic controlled state legislature approved the same-sex marriage bill yesterday by a comfortable margin in both the senate and house; Delaware Governor Jack Merkell signed the bill into law immediately.

Just last year, Delaware officially recognized civil unions.  These days, however, legislative recognition of civil unions is largely perceived by supporters of gay marriage as a useless consolation prize.  Outright recognition of same-sex marriage has been gaining significant momentum over the past several years.

We here at the Law Blogger have been monitoring this civil rights movement as it moves it's way across the state capitals.  Next stop: Minnesota, where the same-sex marriage issue is being hotly debated and the vote expected later this week will be very close.

As the respective state legislatures address this issue one-by-one, legal scholars, along with the rest of us, await the SCOTUS decision addressing the constitutional dimension of this issue in the two consolidated seminal cases submitted to the High Court during the present term.