Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons in the U.S.

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 state of Missouri face some legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT

LGBT

LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...

 residents. Same-sex sexual activity is legal in Missouri

Missouri

Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...

. Same-sex couples and families headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for all of the protections available to opposite-sex married couples.

Laws against homosexuality

Missouri law defines "deviate sexual intercourse" as "any act involving the genitals of one person and the hand, mouth, tongue, or anus of another person or a sexual act involving the penetration, however slight, of the male or female sex organ or the anus by a finger, instrument or object done for the purpose of arousing or gratifying the sexual desire of any person."

Missouri criminalized having "deviate sexual intercourse with another person of the same sex" as "Sexual Misconduct in the First Degree." In 1986, the Supreme Court of Missouri

Supreme Court of Missouri

The Supreme Court of Missouri is the highest court in the state of Missouri. It was established in 1820, and is located in Jefferson City, Missouri. Missouri voters have approved changes in the state's constitution to give the Supreme Court exclusive jurisdiction- the sole legal power to hear -...

 upheld the constitutionality of this prohibition in State v. Walsh. The U.S. Supreme Court

Supreme Court of the United States

The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...

's 2003 decision in Lawrence v. Texas

Lawrence v. Texas

Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 , is a landmark United States Supreme Court case. In the 6-3 ruling, the Court struck down the sodomy law in Texas and, by proxy, invalidated sodomy laws in the thirteen other states where they remained in existence, thereby making same-sex sexual activity legal in...

rendered laws banning consensual sexual activity unenforceable.

In 2006, Missouri removed consensual sodomy from its definition of "Sexual Misconduct in the First Degree."

Recognition of same-sex relationships

In August 2004, 71% of Missouri voters ratified Amendment 2

Missouri Constitutional Amendment 2 (2004)

Constitutional Amendment 2 of 2004 is an amendment to the Missouri Constitution that prohibited same-sex marriages from being conducted or recognized in Missouri. The Amendment passed via public referendum on August 3, 2004 with 71% of voters supporting and 29% opposing. Every county voted in...

, which restricted the validity and recognition of marriage in Missouri to the union of one man and one woman. Missouri does not recognize same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions, even if they are valid where performed.

Adoption and parenting

Missouri has no laws limiting the rights of a homosexual to adopt children. With respect to couples and second-parent adoption, there are no explicit prohibitions and have been no court cases.

Discrimination protection

Missouri law does not address discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation. After being proposed for nine years, a bill to add "sexual orientation" to Missouri's non-discrimination statute had its first committee hearing in March 2010.

Hate crime

Missouri's hate crimes statutes explicitly address both sexual orientation, defined as "male or female heterosexuality, homosexuality or bisexuality by inclination, practice, identity or expression," and gender identity, defined as "having a self-image or identity not traditionally associated with one's gender."

Public opinion

A September 2011 Public Policy Polling

Public Policy Polling

Public Policy Polling is an American Democratic Party-affiliated polling firm based in Raleigh, North Carolina. PPP was founded in 2001 by businessman and Democratic pollster Dean Debnam, the firm's current president and chief executive officer...

survey found that 32% of Missouri voters supported the legalization of same-sex marriage, while 59% were opposed and 9% were not sure. A separate question on the same survey found that 62% of respondents supported legal recognition of same-sex couples, with 28% supporting same-sex marriage, 34% supporting civil unions, 37% opposing all legal recognition and 1% not sure.