In what seems to be an acceleration of the historic LGBT movement, Minnesota officially became the 12th state legalizing same sex marriage after Governor Mark Dayton signed the measure into law. Here’s more:

Minnesota officially became the 12th U.S. state to approve same-sex marriage May 14 when Gov. Mark Dayton appeared before a jubilant crowd to sign a marriage equality bill into law.

“What a day for Minnesota,” Dayton told the spectators, who huddled on the steps of the State House in St. Paul. “What a difference a year and an election can make in our state.”

Dayton’s signature came just a day after the state Senate approved it with a 37-30 vote, the Associated Press reported.

“Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness should certainly include the right to marry the person you love,” he noted.

My heartfelt congrats to the citizens of Minnesota. Another big step towards equality has happened and all those that worked hard to implement this change deserve to be commended for their tireless efforts.

With that said, each time I post a story like this that centers around marriage equality, I ask myself more and more what influence if any this will have over the Supreme Court Justices that are ruling on the now infamous Prop 8 and DOMA cases. Will this show the evolution of thought that has taken over the country in the past year? Will President Obama’s endorsement and belief that we should have the right to marry carry much weight?

Will this lead us to have more discussions on ENDA (Employee Non-Discrimination Act) or would a judgement in our favor help introduce legislation preventing us from being fired because of our sexuality? Will be start to focus on the other issues like transgender exclusion and heteronormative ideology being assimilated into our community?

I have a lot of questions, obviously. But I feel they have merit because while marriage equality should be a focus that we strive for, it should not be the only thing that we are working towards. I know this site talks about it a lot and that is because too often these issues are pushed aside.

I don’t want to take away any importance from the victories we’ve seen over the past year. We should celebrate them because they are progress. And while I feel there is a time and a place to have  discussions on our various issues the fact that they are rarely if ever brought up means that now is just as good a time to mention this as any. I just feel we have so many issues, like job security, group dynamics, etc., that need to be addressed with the same vigor and attention that marriage equality has seen.

Again, congrats to Minnesota.