Family and Marriage News
Coverage of family life, marriage, parenting, and cultural issues shaping households across America, with clear reporting and thoughtful analysis.
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- Opinion
In Address to Congress, Pope Defends Dignity of Politics, Work, Life, Family, and Freedom
Before a joint session of Congress this morning, Pope Francis delivered a rousing address calling upon Americans to live up to the highest of our nation’s ideals. Pointing to Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Jr., Dorothy Day, and Thomas Merton, Francis praised Americans for their commitments to “liberty,” “liberty in plurality and non-exclusion,” “social justice…Ryan T. Anderson -
- Opinion
Why Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s Stance on Marriage Led to His Ousting
Australian politicians have again treated the nation like a failed Pacific Island state, launching yet another coup to topple a serving prime minister. Prime Minister Tony Abbott was cut down by one of his Liberal Party cabinet ministers, Malcolm Turnbull, in a party room vote brought on Monday. Abbott, a conservative, visited the Heritage Foundation…Lyle Shelton -
- News
How a Catholic Cardinal Is Responding to the Assault on Marriage and Family
STEUBENVILLE, Ohio—Pope Francis’s visit to the United States next week will coincide with a meeting of Catholics from all over the world to discuss some of the most pertinent issues facing the church. For a society that’s become increasingly secularized, the upcoming World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia will be an opportunity for bishops to discuss…Rachel del Guidice -
- Opinion
Heterosexuals Are to Blame For the Breakdown of Marriage
In recent days, many Americans have reveled in the hypocrisy of a number of well-known people revealed as subscribers to the Ashley Madison pro-adultery website. But there is a far more important revelation from the hackings: the alarming number who signed up for the site—33 million people. That startling statistic reminds us that no one…Ryan T. Anderson -
- Opinion
Watch Ryan T. Anderson Talk About Release of Kentucky Clerk Jailed Over Marriage Licenses
In an interview with CNN Tuesday night, The Heritage Foundation’s Ryan T. Anderson discussed the relationship between the religious liberty rights of Kim Davis, the Kentucky clerk who doesn’t want to issue same-sex marriage licenses, and the gay and lesbian couples in her area of Kentucky who wish to get married. >>>For more on this,…Daily Signal Staff -
- Opinion
Like No-Fault Divorce, Gay Marriage Will Change Our Relationships Culture
Advocates of same-sex marriage have often mocked those who assert that a legal alteration in the very structure of marriage will most certainly affect the institution itself. Now that the Supreme Court has imposed same-sex marriage on the entire nation, these competing hypotheses will play out for all to see. Same-sex marriage does not merely…Mark Regnerus -
- News
10 Public Officials Who Defied the Law Over Gay Marriage Mostly Silent on Kim Davis Case
A Kentucky clerk at the center of a national controversy was held in contempt of court and sent to jail for refusing to comply with a judge’s order to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. But she isn’t the only public official who has defied the law over same-sex marriage. On Thursday, a federal judge…Melissa Quinn -
- News
23 Tweets on the Kentucky Clerk Jailed Over Gay Marriage Licenses
On Thursday, a Kentucky county clerk at the center of a national controversy was sent to jail. The Lexington Herald-Leader reported that U.S. District Judge David Bunning found Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis in contempt of court and sent her to jail for defying his order to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. BREAKING: Judge…Kate Scanlon -
- News
Why This Libertarian Supports Gay Marriage and Religious Liberty
Many advocates of same-sex marriage are all for equal rights until it comes to the religious liberty rights of individuals and private business owners who don’t want to participate in same-sex weddings. But as Cato Institute constitutional scholar Ilya Shapiro explains, you can be an advocate for both. I begin our conversation by…Genevieve Wood -
- News
Will Government Officials Be Held Accountable for Kate Steinle’s Death? Her Family Filed a Lawsuit.
In an attempt to hold government officials accountable for the shooting death of their 32-year-old daughter Kate, the Steinle family filed a lawsuit against three government agencies. The suit alleges that those agencies are in part responsible for Steinle’s death, but experts say the family has little chance at prevailing. "Unfortunately, prior lawsuits against cities…Kelsey Bolar -
- News
What’s Next for the Marriage Debate After Supreme Court Ruling
Far from settling the marriage debate, the Supreme Court’s ruling on Obergefell v. Hodges raised more questions, according to four participants in a panel discussion Tuesday at The Heritage Foundation. Regardless of their views on same-sex marriage, the panelists said that the majority’s opinion in the Obergefell ruling is unclear, and fails to provide accommodation for…Kate Scanlon -
- News
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott: States, Not Federal Government, Traditionally Regulate Marriage
AUSTIN, Texas—Texas Gov. Greg Abbott says the federal government has no business regulating the issue of marriage. “In the United States Constitution and the amendments there are more than 7,500 words,” Abbott explains to The Daily Signal. “Not a single one of them mentions the word marriage or gives the federal government authority to regulate…David Brody -
- Opinion
Kentucky Clerk Not Issuing Gay Marriage Licenses Causes Uproar. North Carolina Shows Better Way.
In the wake of the Supreme Court’s ruling redefining marriage throughout the country, there’s an open question as to what happens to people who believe marriage is the union of husband and wife. Yesterday the Supreme Court declined to review a lower court’s ruling requiring the county clerk of Rowan County, Ky., to issue marriage…Ryan T. Anderson -
- Opinion
The Feminist War on Family Science
Few social science findings are as durable, consistent, and striking as the idea that children fare better when under the care of two biological parents (on a whole slew of indicators). This is as close to a law of gravity as we have in sociology. Unfortunately, there are a slew of scholars who have ignored…Scott Yenor -
- Opinion
It’s Not Hypocritical to Let Infertile Couples Marry, But Oppose Gay Marriage. Here’s Why.
Why is the government in the marriage business? As I explain in “Truth Overruled: The Future of Marriage and Religious Freedom,” it’s to encourage a man and a woman to unite as husband and wife to then be mother and father to any children their union produces. It’s based on the anthropological truth that men…Ryan T. Anderson -
- News
Kentucky Clerk Allowed to Not Issue Gay Marriage Licenses as Legal Battle Continues
A Kentucky judge has granted a temporary stay to a county clerk so that she doesn’t have to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples while her case is appealed. The Daily Signal’s Ken McIntyre recently reported that Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis has objected to issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples following the Supreme Court’s…Kate Scanlon -
- News
Are Republicans Happier in Their Marriages Than Democrats?
Republicans are happier and more stable in their marriages than Democrats, according to a study released Monday. W. Bradford Wilcox, a prominent sociologist at the University of Virginia, released the analysis finding that Republicans are more often married, less likely to be divorced, and happier in their marriages than Democrats. Forty percent of Democrats between…Natalie Johnson -
- News
One Iranian Family’s Fight to Keep a Colorado City From Taking Their Property
When Nasrin Kholghy opened the letter from the city of Glendale, Colo., in April, it transported her back to another country in another time. The letter notified Kholghy of an upcoming city council meeting. There, Glendale’s leaders would be voting to approve the use of a tool that would give them the power to take…Melissa Quinn -
- Opinion
Can You Oppose Gay Marriage and Be a Good Judge? The Chilling Opinion of Ohio Court’s Board
Are people who publicly affirm that marriage is the union of one man and one woman unfit to be judges? The Ohio Supreme Court’s Board of Professional Conduct came close to saying just that in a recent advisory opinion in the wake of the Supreme Court’s national redefinition of marriage. According to the Board, a…Roger Severino -
- News
County Clerk Appeals Federal Judge’s Gay Marriage Mandate
Lawyers for a county clerk in Kentucky who refuses to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples appealed a federal judge’s order that she do so, asking that the clerk not have to comply meanwhile. Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis so far has not obeyed the order of U.S. District Judge David Bunning that she resume issuing…Ken McIntyre