Is gay marriage just the next step?

[Solon]

[CLASS] For thousands of years, marriage in western society was restricted, usually socially, to members of the same social/economic class. Whether in ancient Rome or Victorian England, marrying too far above/below one's station was frowned upon at least, legally forbidden at most. Although some notions of class remain strongly entrenched in the US, the twentieth century witnessed a radical revision of how class works in US society, and America's large middle class offers manifold chances of upward/downward mobility and a corresponding number of socio-economically acceptable marriage partners.

[RACE] There has also historically been a strong social stigma attached to interracial marriage which lasted in legal miscegenation laws until well into the 1960s. While this stigma remains prevalent in some settings (some LDS publications, in fact), interracial marriages are on the rise in the United States.

[SEX and GENDER] Is the movement towards gay marriage the next step in this progression? In many ways, the trend mirrors events of the twentieth century - issues of economic class were fiery topics in the early years, the Civil Rights Movement of the 50s and 60s focused on issues with race, particularly African-Americans. The 70s brought us feminist issues . . . are homosexual issues the next step?

In 75 years, will those who opposed homosexual marriage be considered in the same way that we today look at those who opposed women's suffrage or school desegregation?