Missouri is the Destination for Child Weddings

[RandySF]

Kansas City Star: “Every other state requires some combination of a judge’s order, parents’ permission, premarital counseling or proof of pregnancy. Some flat-out prohibit marriages so young. But in Missouri, brides and grooms as young as 15 can marry with no more than the single approving swipe of their parent’s pen, even if the other parent objects.”

“Even children ages 14, 13, 12 or younger can marry in Missouri, as it remains one of 25 states with no minimum age requirement, although at 14 or younger, a judge must approve.”

“But 15? One signature.”

“The result: A review of some 50,000 marriage licenses shows how Missouri’s lax law has for years turned the state into a destination wedding spot for 15-year-old child brides, often rushing to get married.”


https://politicalwire.com/2018/03/12/missouri-is-the-destination-for-child-weddings/

[dameatball]

1. Just a hunch

If two same sex 15 year olds showed up and wanted to get married, there might be some sudden restrictions put in place.

[dalton99a]

2. And they aren't allowed to file for divorce

In Missouri, married minors under 18 aren’t even allowed to file for divorce without a parent’s signature. If their marriage turns abusive, they often are too young to check themselves into an adult shelter.

http://www.kansascity.com/news/state/missouri/article204287484.html

[MineralMan]

3. From my own High School, I know of several teen marriages from

my own time, which was 1959-63. Most were when the girl in question was 16 years old, and all were due to an unexpected pregnancy. I keep up with my high school class and those around my graduation year. There's a very active alumni group on Facebook.

Of the early marriages I know about, only one has survived intact. One. That couple is still together, and has great grandchildren aplenty. They're the exception, though.

Forced or pressured marriages of kids in their teens are probably not a particularly good idea, I think. Back in my teen years, contraceptive protection wasn't readily available. Pharmacies, which were the only place you could get condoms, weren't allowed to sell them to anyone who was unmarried and under the age of 21. Such sales were illegal.

I had an older friend who bought them for me, as needed. But, it was a very small town, and even if they were legal, going into the local pharmacy to buy them as a teenager was not something most boys would have done. So, pregnancies were not uncommon in my day. They happened. Some girls went "to visit their aunt." Others managed to get an abortion from the one doctor who would perform them occasionally in some circumstances. Others found themselves at the altar, pressured into marriage by parents. Being a single mom at that time was not an acceptable thing, really. Pregnant girls, even if married, were not allowed to continue in school, either, in my small California town. Bad news all around.

It was not an optimal situation, to say the least. It was a real concern for couples who were sexually active as teens. I remember that all too well. I and my girlfriend were very careful and very lucky, really. Looking back, I probably wouldn't have been doing that, had I known then what I know now.

So, I'm not really pleased to hear that Missouri makes such forced marriages so easy. They're unlikely to turn out well.

[d_r]

4. There's been a lot of media attention

to this in the last few weeks due to state bills in Kentucky and Tennessee going down after being opposed by evangelical groups. My take on the response has been that folks are dismayed by the evangelicals supporting child marriage, and their hypocrisy in condemning Islam for it and for being against gay marriage and turning around and saying that the state shouldn't be able to limit definitions of marriage.

But I think what a lot of people are missing is how the growth of evangelical fervor against abortion since the 1970s plays in this. Having a teenage daughter with a child has gone from a stigma to a badge of honor. What used to be a situation that drew embarrassment and shame has become one of pride, as the grand parents demonstrate "see how against abortion I am? It will be a hard life for her, but she has to live with her decisions."

Nevermind that simply teaching the teens to use birth control would prevent the pregnancy in the first place (that would be condoning teen age sex; forcing your daughter to have the child and get marriage is not condoning teen sex, in their view, it is accepting responsibility for the sin and being punished).

In my opinion, that is why these groups oppose these laws preventing child marriage.

[MineralMan]

7. One of my nephews has two teen daughters.

15 and 17 years old. Last year, at a family gathering, their mother said that they got Nexplanon implants at age 14. The older one now has a new one. My wife said, "Really?" Their mother shrugged. "What're you gonna do?"

I suppose that take some of the worry away. If I had teenaged daughters, that would probably be my plan, too, with their permission, of course, after "the talk." I remember being a teenager, back when there was no such thing available, and even condoms were sold only at pharmacies and only to people 21 and older. It's better now. Kids will have sex. That's a fact. Today's kids don't have to worry as much as we did back in the early 1960s. That's what we did. We worried a lot, despite being very careful.

[crazycatlady]

5. It is always girls who are the children who get married

You don't read stories about child grooms.

I'm fascinated by the FLDS and have read several books written by women who have gotten out. It's usually a teen girl marrying a man old enough to be her father.

[leftyladyfrommo]

6. A lot if these girls marry to keep their boyfriends

from going to jail for statutory rape.

Thus whole issue needs to be revisited.

[lindysalsagal]

8. I don't like this pregnancy exemption at all.

There should be a federal minimum, and I think it should be 18.