--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: California is a bellwether state…" description: "\"California is a bellwether state. California was the first state in the United States to overturn the laws against interracial marriage. It took 19 yea..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77a/gavin-newsom-3708_california_california-is-a-bellwether-state-califor_397918.png" --- # California is a bellwether state. California was the first… ![“California is a bellwether state. California was the first state in the United States to overturn the laws against interracial marriage. It took 19 years for the rest of the country to come around to that point of view.” quote by Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77a/gavin-newsom-3708_california_california-is-a-bellwether-state-califor_397918.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77a/gavin-newsom-3708_california_california-is-a-bellwether-state-califor_397918.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77a/gavin-newsom-3708_california_california-is-a-bellwether-state-califor_397918.png) > “California is a bellwether state. California was the first state in the United States to overturn the laws against interracial marriage. It took 19 years for the rest of the country to come around to that point of view.” [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. California leads social change, exemplified by early interracial marriage legalization, influencing national trends. **In simple terms:** California sets trends for the nation. Key Takeaway Support progressive policies that can inspire broader change. Themes politics social progress leadership Mood optimistic analytical Type political historical When to use this quote - state legislation - national debates - public opinion Key Concepts civil rights policy diffusion Questions to Reflect On - How can other states follow California’s lead? - What barriers hinder policy diffusion? A Different Perspective Other states may resist change despite California’s example. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [California](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/california/) [California Bellwether](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/california-bellwether-3575403/) [California State](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/california-state-2109338/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Interracial marriage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interracial-marriage/) [Laws Interracial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laws-interracial-3541643/) [Marriage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marriage/) [Point of view](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/point-of-view/) [Rest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rest/) [State California](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/state-california-938486/) ## Related quotes > [“In 1967, almost 100 years later, the US Supreme Court unanimously ruled in Loving v Virginia that the Constitution prohibited state laws against interracial marriage.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-denning/in-1967-almost-100-years-later-the-us-supreme-court-unanimously-ruled/) [Susan Denning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-denning/) > [The so-called Defense of Marriage Act is a valueless tradition that, like laws against interracial marriage that were finally overturned by the Supreme Court…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jared-polis/the-so-called-defense-of-marriage-act-is-a-valueless-tradition-that/) [Jared Polis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jared-polis/) > [I don't think the state of California realized there would be this many people here caught up in the freeway system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grieco/i-don-t-think-the-state-of-california-realized-there-would-be-this/) [Richard Grieco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grieco/) > [I was raised by the state of California, and then various families and mentors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-shamrock/i-was-raised-by-the-state-of-california-and-then-various-families-and/) [Frank Shamrock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-shamrock/) > [The most dangerous place I've ever performed standup is in my home state of California.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whitney-cummings/the-most-dangerous-place-i-ve-ever-performed-standup-is-in-my-home/) [Whitney Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whitney-cummings/) > [The state of California has no business subsidizing intellectual curiosity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/the-state-of-california-has-no-business-subsidizing-intellectual/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [I know - firsthand - that California works best when everyone has the opportunity to succeed. It's a lesson that's hard to learn from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-de-leon/i-know-firsthand-that-california-works-best-when-everyone-has-the/) [Kevin de Leon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-de-leon/) > [California is the only state in the union where you can fall asleep under a rose bush in full bloom and freeze to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/california-is-the-only-state-in-the-union-where-you-can-fall-asleep/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [California is a state peculiarly addicted to swift enthusiasms. It is a seed-bed of all manner of cults and theories, taken up, and dropped,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/california-is-a-state-peculiarly-addicted-to-swift-enthusiasms-it-is/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [Imagine this country without the 20 million illegals that are here. Imagine the state of California. And this is not... It's nothing more than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/imagine-this-country-without-the-20-million-illegals-that-are-here/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [It is extremely important that individuals in the state of California do not own assault weapons. I mean that is just so crystal clear,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leland-yee/it-is-extremely-important-that-individuals-in-the-state-of-california/) [Leland Yee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leland-yee/) > [I am calling on everyone in this state to put the chaos and the division of the recall behind us and do what's right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gray-davis/i-am-calling-on-everyone-in-this-state-to-put-the-chaos-and-the/) [Gray Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gray-davis/) > [I am not delusional. Listen, I am not naive to the fact that people are not shouting my name all over the state of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-de-leon/i-am-not-delusional-listen-i-am-not-naive-to-the-fact-that-people-are/) [Kevin de Leon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-de-leon/) > [You don't have to look any farther than the state of California to know that having a 'Gordian knot' of conflicting measures acting upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cary-kennedy/you-don-t-have-to-look-any-farther-than-the-state-of-california-to/) [Cary Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cary-kennedy/) > [You can look at the state of California, which is on a pathway to destruction because they expanded government too much, thinking that there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-abbott/you-can-look-at-the-state-of-california-which-is-on-a-pathway-to/) [Greg Abbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-abbott/) ## More by Gavin Newsom > [Make no mistake: conversion therapy is not about 'praying away the gay.' It's an emotional torture against our most innocent citizens: our children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-newsom/make-no-mistake-conversion-therapy-is-not-about-praying-away-the-gay/) [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) > [If you're not open, you're not transparent, you're still holding on to vaults of information, you're not going to build that trust.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-newsom/if-you-re-not-open-you-re-not-transparent-you-re-still-holding-on-to/) [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) > [As Mayor, I will fully support my Arts Commission and its professional selection committees so that they can commission a full range of public…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-newsom/as-mayor-i-will-fully-support-my-arts-commission-and-its-professional/) [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) > [While it was refreshing to finally see an openly gay man speak at a Republican convention, it doesn't remove the stain of selecting Mike…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-newsom/while-it-was-refreshing-to-finally-see-an-openly-gay-man-speak-at-a/) [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) > [If you distill the essence of everything, what life is about, every single one of us is given a short moment in time on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-newsom/if-you-distill-the-essence-of-everything-what-life-is-about-every/) [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) > [I did not love reading, spelling, math and science. I struggled. I was a terrible speller.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-newsom/i-did-not-love-reading-spelling-math-and-science-i-struggled-i-was-a/) [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) > [I will negotiate with my worst enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-newsom/i-will-negotiate-with-my-worst-enemy/) [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) > [The economy is not immutable; it's not about natural laws. It's about rules, and we make the rules.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-newsom/the-economy-is-not-immutable-it-s-not-about-natural-laws-it-s-about/) [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) > [City government can and must help San Franciscans prepare for emergencies in order to avoid tragedy where possible and minimize loss of life and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-newsom/city-government-can-and-must-help-san-franciscans-prepare-for/) [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) > [Government doesn't have to come up with new killer features on its own. It has to step aside and let others come up with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-newsom/government-doesn-t-have-to-come-up-with-new-killer-features-on-its/) [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) > [Government can do best by simply getting out of the way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-newsom/government-can-do-best-by-simply-getting-out-of-the-way/) [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) > [San Francisco businesses face many challenges, including high rents, regulatory burdens, and the rising cost of workers compensation insurance and employee health plans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-newsom/san-francisco-businesses-face-many-challenges-including-high-rents/) [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) > [Do I support a driver's license for everybody? The answer is yes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-newsom/do-i-support-a-driver-s-license-for-everybody-the-answer-is-yes/) [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) > [The whole idea that the Constitution of the United States would be used to advance a political agenda is absurd.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-newsom/the-whole-idea-that-the-constitution-of-the-united-states-would-be/) [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) > [I don't know many better training grounds than being mayor of San Francisco - those were pretty intense years in terms of reporting and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-newsom/i-don-t-know-many-better-training-grounds-than-being-mayor-of-san/) [Gavin Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) [Explore all 124 Gavin Newsom quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-newsom/) ## More California quotes > [Everyone in California is from somewhere else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wright-morris/everyone-in-california-is-from-somewhere-else/) [Wright Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wright-morris/) > [Even with clothing naked animals, there were people who wanted to send in money. A woman in Santa Barbara, California, sent a $40,000 check.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-abel/even-with-clothing-naked-animals-there-were-people-who-wanted-to-send/) [Alan Abel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-abel/) > [We need to incorporate that age-old concept of redemption into the work that we do in the criminal justice system in California.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamala-harris/we-need-to-incorporate-that-age-old-concept-of-redemption-into-the/) [Kamala Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamala-harris/) > [The Urban Literate Southern California Sub-Group of the Early Atomic Period has not yet produced a distinct body of folk music of its own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-hinton/the-urban-literate-southern-california-sub-group-of-the-early-atomic/) [Sam Hinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-hinton/) > [California is a place in which a boom mentality and a sense of Chekhovian loss meet in uneasy suspension.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/california-is-a-place-in-which-a-boom-mentality-and-a-sense-of/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [Many militarists would like to see California's votes vanish from the national electoral system, which would then become more Republican.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-swanson/many-militarists-would-like-to-see-california-s-votes-vanish-from-the/) [David Swanson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-swanson/) > [When I started in California, people would say, 'Enterprise who?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-nicholson/when-i-started-in-california-people-would-say-enterprise-who/) [Pamela Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pamela-nicholson/) > [Take one round-trip flight between New York and California, and you've generated about 20 percent of the greenhouse gases that your car emits over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tatiana-schlossberg/take-one-round-trip-flight-between-new-york-and-california-and-you-ve/) [Tatiana Schlossberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tatiana-schlossberg/) > [These French-style caramels are handmade in California. It's always hard to give them away!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/these-french-style-caramels-are-handmade-in-california-it-s-always/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [The D.C. playbook is obsolete. It's time for the people of California to bring the agenda to Washington, not the other way around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-de-leon/the-d-c-playbook-is-obsolete-it-s-time-for-the-people-of-california/) [Kevin de Leon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-de-leon/) > [While there is an attempt by the Trump people to say that California isn't really America. California certainly seems like America to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-frum/while-there-is-an-attempt-by-the-trump-people-to-say-that-california/) [David Frum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-frum/) > [I'm from California, but my father, who passed away when I was young, was from Newark. When I was kid, we would go back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carson-daly/i-m-from-california-but-my-father-who-passed-away-when-i-was-young/) [Carson Daly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carson-daly/) > [“God will break California from the surface of the continent like someone breaking off a piece of chocolate. It will become its own floating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-ruby/god-will-break-california-from-the-surface-of-the-continent-like/) [Laura Ruby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-ruby/) > [You could have a hit in California that no one had heard of in Oklahoma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wanda-jackson/you-could-have-a-hit-in-california-that-no-one-had-heard-of-in/) [Wanda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wanda-jackson/) > [My first encounter with yoga was in 1969 with my older brother Doug. I was thirteen years old, and he was eighteen. He'd learned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-f-swensen/my-first-encounter-with-yoga-was-in-1969-with-my-older-brother-doug-i/) [David F. Swensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-f-swensen/) [Browse all 2,036 California quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/california/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "California is a bellwether state. California was the first state in the United States to overturn the laws against interracial marriage. 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