American gay rights activist William E. Woods brought three same-sex couples to fill out marriage licenses in Honolulu, leading to the eventual legalization of same-sex marriage in the United States.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) movements are social movements that advocate for the inclusion, recognition, and rights of LGBTQ people and other gender and sexual minorities.

William Everett Woods was an American gay rights activist. He advocated for better treatment of gay people through his political organizing and public commentary. In 1990, he took three same-sex couples to fill out marriage licenses, beginning the series of events that would lead to the legalization of same-sex marriage in the United States.

A same-sex relationship is a romantic or sexual relationship between people of the same sex. Same-sex marriage refers to the institutionalized recognition of such relationships in the form of a marriage; civil unions exist in some countries where same-sex marriage does not.

A marriage license is a document issued, either by a religious organization or state authority, authorizing a couple to marry. The procedure for obtaining a license varies between jurisdictions, and has changed over time. Marriage licenses began to be issued in the Middle Ages, to permit a marriage that would otherwise be illegal.

Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same legal sex. As of 2025, marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 38 countries, with a total population of 1.5 billion people. The most recent jurisdiction to legalize same-sex marriage is Thailand.