By ruling that the case challenging Proposition 8 was not brought properly before the court, the Supreme Court relegalized gay marriage for 38 million people who live in California. Despite their victories, the above chart shows that gay rights activists have a long way to go before the U.S. joins countries such as Canada, Brazil, and Sweden in accepting gay marriage nationwide. Nearly two-thirds of the U.S. population, or 219 million people, still live in states where gay marriage is illegal, and many of those states (35, to be exact) even have anti-gay-marriage laws or constitutional amendments prohibiting it.

A recent Gallup poll showed that 53 percent of Americans believe same-sex marriages should be legal. Delaware legalized gay marriage on Monday, and laws legalizing gay marriage in Minnesota and Rhode Island go into effect Aug. 1.