Sometimes history is made quietly. No marches. No campaigns. No bumper stickers or yard signs.

Such was the case this week in both our nation’s capital and our own state capital, and a handful of cities sprinkled around our nation.

On March 2, same-sex marriages will be recognized in the District of Columbia. No, D.C. isn’t a state, and the politics of the city can be confusing. While D.C. residents do not have representation in the Senate, they do have one representative to the House, though that individual is only allowed to vote on procedural matters and in committees. D.C. does have three votes for the Electoral College.

Still, what happened this week was a quiet victory for GLBT couples everywhere. The city’s council voted 11-2 in favor of recognizing same-sex marriage. Unlike other cities or states, the votes of D.C.’s council are subject to approval by the U.S. Congress. So when the victory in city hall was announced, Congress had 30 days to over turn the vote.

Much to the surprise of many pundits, this bill came and went with little fan-fare. Perhaps Congressional Republicans knew they didn’t have the votes to over-ride the City Council’s vote, or perhaps everyone really is reading through the 2,400 pages of the Senate Health Care Initiative. Let us hope this is a sign of things to come, that family values will mean making sure each member of the family has access to education and a job. Let us hope that this is a sign that says, as a nation, we are tired of being used as a wedge issue.

Historically, Congress has over-turned D.C. council decisions just three times in the last 25 years. But many advocates were cautiously optimistic. Few issues spark such heated debate and divide as marriage equality. And while more than three quarters of the city’s 600,000 population is registered Democrat, it also has a near-two-thirds population of African-Americans. And if there is one lesson we learned from Proposition 8, race matters.

Nonetheless, the 30 day period has passed, and city hall in nation’s capital is open and ready for business, the same-sex marriage kind.

While there is a three day waiting period once paperwork is filed, couples are expected to take advantage of the groundbreaking opportunity.

Our straight allies are at work, as well. Senator Joseph Lieberman, the Independent Senator from Connecticut who announced this week that he will be sponsoring the bill that will repeal the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy. Lieberman released this statement:

“I will be proud to be a sponsor of the important effort to enable patriotic gay Americans to defend our national security and our founding values of freedom and opportunity. To exclude one group of Americans from serving in the armed forces is contrary to our fundamental principles as outlined in the Declaration of Independence and weakens our defenses by denying our military the service of a large group of Americans who can help our cause.”

And here in California, another historic moment occurred when State Assemblymember John A. Pérez was sworn in as California’s 68th Speaker of the Assembly, its first openly gay Assemblymember to hold this post. It is also important to note that Pérez is Latino, another group where marriage equality has struggled to find a voice.

Pérez, who is cousin to Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, invited a few friends from Los Angeles to help celebrate, including the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles who sang, “Can you feel a brand new day?”

Now we must not expect Speaker Pérez to radically change the political arena as it stands. After all, he is inheriting a 12 percent unemployment rate and a $20 billion deficit fiscal crisis that is hitting our social services and education particularly hard.

That being said, there’s that old expression that says, “We’d like to have a seat at the table.” Well, it’s even better to be sitting at the head of the table.

Sacramento isn’t the only place of hope. December’s election of Annise Parker as the mayor of Houston, making her the first openly lesbian politician to lead a major U.S. city. While Providence, Rhode Island and Portland, Oregon have openly gay mayors, Houston is the fourth largest city in our nation.

And for those who believe the T in GLBT is silent when it comes to our political landscape, we would be well reminded that Stu Rasmussen was the first transgender mayor in the United States, as mayor of Silverton, Oregon.

With the Winter Olympics closing and athletes are returning with their medals, as a community, we have some champions among us, too. And maybe we didn’t know they were there, or maybe they flew under the radar, but as the GLBT community continues to pursue equality, we must remain keenly aware of our progress.

So, please join us as we raise our cup to salute Washington, D.C.’s city council, California’s Speaker of the Assembly Pérez, Mayors Parker and Rasmussen, and Senator Lieberman. They may not be making the major headlines, but they are making major history.