January 1, Bill Amended Following Backlash Over Child Marriage Concerns
Tennessee lawmakers were forced to amend a controversial common-law marriage bill after the original draft received intense backlash for doing away with age requirements for marriages.
The bill, HB 233, would establish common-law marriage between “one man” and “one woman,” but the original proposal didn’t include a minimum age requirement. Critics said it could open up the possibility of child marriages.
“It should not be there as it’s basically a get out of jail free card for people who are basically committing statutory rape—I mean it’s completely ridiculous, so that’s another reason why this terrible bill should be eliminated,” said Rep. Mike Stewart (D), who serves on the subcommittee that passed the legislation.
An amendment added an age limit of 18. State Rep. Tom Leatherwood (R), the bill’s sponsor, said the backlash consisted of “some legitimate concerns, others were looking for indirect ways to work against the bill and that’s fine, that’s the political process.”
Current Tennessee law states that the minimum age for marriage is 17 with parental consent.
There isn’t a federal law that sets age requirements for marriages and states are allowed to set their own parameters. According to United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), child marriage is currently legal in 44 states and nearly 300,000 children were married between 2000 and 2018.
Only six states have banned child marriage, including Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and New York.
Source:
‘A get out of jail free card’: GOP bill would eliminate age requirements for marriages in Tennessee
-
Entertainment4 months ago‘He’s A Pr*ck And F*cking Hates Republicans’: Megyn Kelly Goes Off on Don Lemon
-
Entertainment8 months agoWhoopi Goldberg’s “Wildly Inappropriate” Commentary Forces “The View” into Unscheduled Commercial Break
-
Entertainment8 months agoLate Night Host is Getting Canceled After Staffers Speak Out
-
Entertainment3 months agoBeach Boys Founder Brian Wilson Announces Tragic News
-
Featured8 months agoUS Advises Citizens to Leave This Country ASAP
-
Entertainment2 months agoComedy Mourns Legend Richard Lewis: A Heartfelt Farewell
-
Featured7 months agoBenghazi Hero: Hillary Clinton is “One of the Most Disgusting Humans on Earth”
-
Latest News2 months agoSupreme Court Gift: Trump’s Trial Delayed, Election Interference Allegations Linger
Rat Wrangler
April 8, 2022 at 8:23 pm
Why limit marriage to one man and one woman? God did not admonish Solomon for having 700 wives, nor did he accuse him of fornication because of his 300 concubines. Many figures in the Bible had multiple wives, and God was OK with that. Perhaps it is time we abolish the modern concept of marriage and declare that any union created by love is acceptable, even if it involves polygamy and polyandry. If we make it a contract system, so that all the involved parties know exactly what they have to put into the relationship, and exactly what they will get out of it, maybe only people serious about marriage will sign up, and divorce numbers will drop substantially.