In 2004, the Pew Research Center poll found that Americans opposed same-sex marriage 60% to 31%. But a series of legal rulings, cultural shifts, prominent gay figures in entertainment becoming wildly popular, and growing advocacy changed the entire tenor of the debate. By 2019, Pew polling on that same question of what we now call marriage equality had totally flipped: 61% supported same-sex marriage, while 31% opposed it.<\/p>\n
This represented the most rapid and profound change in American attitudes on any social issue since we had any measurements. So how did it happen? \u00a0Our guest today is Sasha Issenberg. He\u2019s one of the most insightful and widely-read journalists in America, especially when it comes to dissecting what\u2019s happening behind the curtain in American politics. He\u2019s the author of The Engagement: America\u2019s Quarter Century Struggle Over Same-Sex Marriage, a fascinating look behind the scenes of both sides in the marriage equality fight. He\u2019s here to tell us the inside story of what really happened.<\/p>\n