POLL: Has Southwest Riverside County Changed Its Stance On Gay Marriage?

As the U.S. Supreme Court takes up the issue of gay marriage this week, national polls indicate Americans have increased tolerance for same-sex unions.

Despite controversy surrounding polls, most show there is increased support for gay rights, including the right to marry.

The Supreme Court will hear arguments on two marriage cases this week -- Hollingsworth v. Perry and U.S. v. Windsor. The Perry, scheduled to be heard tomorrow, case deals with California's Proposition 8, a measure passed by voters in 2008 that says marriage between a man and a woman is the only kind recognized by the state.

During the November 2008 election, Riverside County showed strong support for the measure: 64.61 percent of voters who turned out cast a “yes” ballot. During the campaign, supporters holding "Yes on 8" signs lined many Southwest Riverside County streets.

The Supreme Court will also take up the Windsor case, to be heard Wednesday, which deals with the constitutionality of the federal Defense of Marriage Act, or DOMA, signed into law in 1996 by President Bill Clinton. The law says that marriage in federal law or regulation means the union of a man and a woman.

The court is expected to rule on the cases in June.

What is your position? Have your views changed since 2008? Are you staunchly in favor or against same-sex unions? Why? --City News Service contributed to this report.