Society in the United States has evolved tremendously over the last century. With this evolution there has been a redefinition of what gender and gender roles are and this redefinition has influenced a change in the common structure of families and marriages in the United States. Among the many social changes that have occurred in the United States there have been many changes for women. Women in today's society are more independent and have more authority than in the past. Men and women have become much more equal and these changes in society have a lot to do with the world wars. When the soldiers left for war, the women took the jobs they had left. Women could now support themselves independently. As divorce became more acceptable and more common, female-headed families increased. This has changed gender roles for women in the United States, now not only are women domestic, but they can be the breadwinners of their families. It is clearly evident that the change in gender roles for women has influenced a change in families and marriage through how women have more independence from their counterparts and how they have more authority within the family. Along with a change in the gender role for women over the last century has come a change in ideas about gender and sexuality. The acceptance of sexual orientations in addition to heterosexuality has led to a great change in marriages and families. One factor in this acceptance was the media. There have been quite a few shows featuring homosexual and transgender characters. The media has influenced many people to fight for some legal rights for homosexual people. This has led to the legalization of same-sex marriage in some states. Now there are many marriages in the United States between homosexual people. Alon......middle of paper......because there are a lot of same sex marriages now as they have been legalized in some states and also the way families are made up now whether it's of a single mother who leads the family or a gay couple who have adopted children. It's crazy how quickly the United States has changed over the last century. Works Cited Ebanks, Ryan. “Gender, gender roles, family and kinship”. Florida Atlantic University.Social Sciences Building, FAU, Boca Raton, FL. February 18, 2014. Discussion.“!!THE GAY PARENTS DEBATE IN HOLLYWOOD!!” YouTube. YouTube, June 5, 2010. Network. March 31, 2014. Kottak, Conrad Phillip. Cultural anthropology: appreciating cultural diversity. 14th edition.New York. McGraw Hill, 2011. Print. “TEDxKA: Gender Roles and Stereotypes by Serene Akkawi.” YouTube. KingsAcademy, March 6, 2012. Web. March 31, 2014. “Tony Porte A Call to Men. “Ted speaks. Ted, December 2010. Web. March 31 2013