| This study qualitatively explored the experiences related to same-sex marriage of five male couples living in the San Francisco metropolitan area, all of whom had been married at San Francisco City Hall in 2004. Through a series of interviews with the ten participants, 10 hours of dialogue was recorded, transcribed, and analyzed to identify emergent themes within the data. Findings indicated that many men in the study had experienced a greater sense of societal legitimacy and inclusion in society following their marriages. Some also had experienced a greater sense of comfort and safety, along with a sense of diminished vulnerability, following marriage. Among some, following the marriage there had been a period of dawning awareness of how much had been missing from life due to the denial of marriage equality. The sense of having been treated as a second-class citizen had frustrated and angered some, while others had considered relocation to escape social injustice. A discussion of the findings of the study is followed by recommendations for future directions in same-sex marriage research. |
