President Obama has famously said his views on gay marriage are “evolving.” Judging whether that “evolution” represents an earnest grappling with the ethical issues (such as they are) surrounding the policy question or political expediency is beyond the mandate of this blog.

But a series of excellent charts from the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life nicely document the American public’s own evolution where gay marriage is concerned. Views are changing quickly: In 2001, Americans opposed same-sex marriage by a 57% to 35% margin. Today, the public is about evenly split, with 47% in favor and 43% opposed.