1948: Alfred Kinsey publishes Sexual Behavior In The Human Male

1962: Illinois becomes first state in The US to discriminalize homosexual acts between to two consenting adults in the privacy of their homes.

1977: The Nevada State Senate – meeting a mere twenty miles from the nearest legalized brothel and just across the street from the nearest casino – votes to retain criminal penalties (1-6 years in prison) for homosexual acts between consenting adults, and, under a new amendment, prohibits the parole of anyone convicted of such acts unless it can be shown they will not be “a menace to the health, safety, and morals of others.”

2001: The Chinese Society of Psychiatry declares homosexuality no longer an illness. The new Chinese Classification and Diagnostic Criteria of Mental Disorders removed homosexuality from its list of mental illnesses.

2004: Oregon Circuit Court Judge Frank Bearden rules that the state must “accept and register” marriages of same-sex couples. He then orders a temporary stop to issuing new licenses, but gives the Oregon Legislative Assembly 90 days from the start of its next session to write a law that ensures identical rights for same-sex couples, which could happen through civil marriage or civil union.

2005: The Connecticut state legislature approves a law to allow same-sex civil unions effective October 1, 2005.