Child marriage in the United States is an embarrassing issue.
It’s time for the United States to take a strong stand in setting a national standard, by limiting the rights and responsibilities of marriage to those aged 18 and older and aligning New York and other states with the national and international goal of ending the harmful practice of child marriage.The minimum marriage age in most states is 18, but every state allows exceptions under which children under age 18 can wed.
The beginning of the end.
The current law in New York allowing children to marry at 14 was added in 1929. It provides no guidelines for judges to consider under what circumstances a child should be married at such a young age.The minimum marriage age in New York is 18. However, children ages 16 or 17 may wed with “parental consent” (with no process in place to ensure it’s not actually “parental coercion”), and children age 14 or 15 may wed with “parental consent” and judicial approval (with no instructions for judges not to approve marriages for couple with age differences that are considered statutory rape).
Let’s talk numbers!
3,853 children were married in New York between 2000 and 2010, many with significant age differences. In 2011 alone, a 14-year-old married a 26-year-old in New York, and a 15-year-old married someone age “35 to 39.” A 15-year-old was wed to a 28-year-old. Another 15-year-old was wed to a 25-year-old. All those marriages required approval from New York judges.
85 percent of the children who were married between 1997 and 2010 were minor girls wed to adults. These marriages include 14 or 15-year-old girls married to men older than 25 years of age, and all of these marriages were approved by New York judges. In New York State, sexual relations between minors and adults of these ages is considered statutory rape.
Neighboring New Jersey approved 3,481 marriages involving minors between 1995 and 2012. Ninety-one percent of these marriages involved children married to adults, and 90 percent of the children married were girls.6
There is legislation pending in both houses of the New York State legislature to reform this law and ban all marriage before the age of 17. The new law would allow 17-year-olds to marry only if a judge gives permission — everyone else would have to wait until they are at least 18.
Many people are surprised to hear child marriage happens in the United States.
They would be even more shocked to hear that in 27 states, there is actually no limit to how early a child can marry,if a judge signs off on the marriage.
Marriage before the age of 18;is deeply harmful to children who marry; and their children. Married children often drop out of school and are locked in poverty as a result. Married girls often quickly become pregnant, which involves serious health risks for pregnant girls and their babies. Girls who marry earlier are at higher risk of domestic violence than women. Married girls often face extra barriers in escaping an abusive or unhappy marriage, and accessing shelter and legal assistance.
Virginia changed its age of marriage in 2016. According to the Tahirh Justice Center, between 2004 and 2013 nearly 4,500 children under 18 were married in Virginia.
Legislation to fight child marriage is pending in New Jersey and Maryland.In February 2017,assembly woman Amy Paulin introduced a bill to raise the minimum age of marriage in New York from 14 to 17 years of age;the proceeds of which are still unknown.
Countries around the world have committed to end child marriage by 2030, and many are developing plans to meet this goal. Donor countries, including the US, have given funds to help developing countries fight child marriage. The Netherlands, Sweden, Spain, Malawi, and Nepal are among the countries that have recently changed their laws in an effort to reduce child marriage.
