Photo courtesy of the New York Times.

Same sex marriage has historically been a political flash-point in the U.S.

That flash-point just got a little flashier this weekend when hundreds of couples joined in wedded bliss as New York became the sixth and largest U.S. state to recognize same sex marriages.

New York now joins Iowa, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Connecticut in recognizing same-sex unions.

The day was emotionally charged for many. Couples waited in the stifling July heat, and volunteers passed out water bottles. Steve Mulrooney and Jerome Van Wert traveled all the way from Missouri to be married.

Kitty Lambert and Cheryl Rudd were married at Luna Island immediately after midnight, making them the state’s first same-sex union. Ms. Lambert said,

“We’re achieving that real American dream to be treated like everybody else and be protected under all those laws.”

Others were less enthusiastic about the change. Rallies in New York, Albany, Buffalo, and Rochester drew crowds opposed to the change.

Crowds waved signs reading, “Marriage=Man and Woman,” and, “God Cannot Be Mocked.” Tre’ Staton, an organizer of the protest explained,

“We’re not against anybody, but we don’t want this imposed on us…We’re looking for a referendum, an opportunity to have our fair say.”

With the upcoming repeal of the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy, tempers, along with temperatures, seem likely to continue to climb.