What is marriage?

Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy

Volumn 34, Issue 1, 2010, Pages 245-287

  Girgis, Sherif ^a   George, Robert P ^a   Anderson, Ryan T ^b  

^a PRINCETON UNIVERSITY   (United States)

^b UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME   (United States)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

EID: 80051867606     PISSN: 01934872     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: None     Document Type: Article

References (71)

1. See John M. Finnis, Law, Morality, and "Sexual Orientation", 69 NOTRE DAME L. REV. 1049, 1066 (1994);
2. John Finnis, "Marriage: A Basic and Exigent Good", THE MONIST, July-Oct. 2008, 388-406.
3. See also PATRICK LEE & ROBERT P. GEORGE, BODY-SELF DUALISM IN CONTEMPORARY ETHICS AND POLITICS 176-97 (2008).
4. See Stephen Macedo, Homosexuality and the Conservative Mind, 84 GEO. L. J. 261, 279 (1995).
5. See William N. Eskridge, Jr., A History of Same-Sex Marriage, 79 VA. L. REV. 1419, 1424 (1993).
6. See Loving v. Virginia, 388 U. S. 1, 11 (1967).
7. See Cara Mia DiMassa & Jessica Garrison, Why Gays, Blacks are Divided on Prop. 8, L. A. TIMES, Nov. 8, 2008, at A1.
8. See Perry v. Schwarzenegger, 704 F. Supp. 2d 921 (N. D. Cal. 2010).
9. Among revisionists, see, for example, Jonathan Rauch, For Better or Worse? The case for Gay (and Straight) Marriage, THE NEW REPUBLIC, May 6, 1996, at 18, available at http://www.jonathanrauch.com/jrauch-articles/gay-marriage-1- the-case-for-marriage;
10. Ralph Wedgwood, The Fundamental Argument for Same-Sex Marriage, 7 J. POL. PHIL. 225, 229 (1999);
11. Jonathan Rauch, Not So Fast, Mr. George, INDEP. GAY F. (Aug. 2, 2006), http://igfculturewatch.com/2006/08/02/not-so-fast-mrgeorge. Among supporters of the conjugal view
12. see, for example, ST. THOMAS AQUINAS, SUMMA THEOLOGICA Supp., Q. 44, Art. 1.
13. See, e.g., THOMAS WALTER LAQUEUR, MAKING SEX, BODY AND GENDER FROM THE GREEKS TO FREUD 48 (1990).
14. The Oxford English Dictionary charts the usage of " consummation" as, among other definitions not relating to marriage, "[t]he completion of marriage by sexual intercourse." OXFORD ENGLISH DICTIONARY III, at 803 (2d ed. 1989). The earliest such usage recorded in law was the 1548 Act 2-3 Edw. VI, c. 23 § 2: "Sentence for Matrimony, commanding Solemnization, Cohabitation, Consummation and Tractation as becometh Man and Wife to have." Id. In more modern usage, "consummation of marriage" is still regarded in family law as "[t]he first postmarital act of sexual intercourse between a husband and wife."
15. BLACK'S LAW DICTIONARY 359 (9th ed. 2009).
16. for the relevant studies, see ten principles on marriage and the public good, signed by some seventy scholars, which corroborates the philosophical case for marriage with extensive evidence from the social sciences about the welfare of children and adults. the witherspoon institute, marriage and the public good: ten principles 9-19 (2008), available at http://www.winst.org/family- marriage-and-democracy/wi-marriage.pdf.
17. Kristin Anderson Moore et al., Marriage from a Child's Perspective: How Does Family Structure Affect Children, and What Can We Do About It?, CHILD TRENDS RESEARCH BRIEF, June 2002, at 1-2, 6, available at http://www. childtrends.org/files/MarriageRB602.pdf.
18. Wendy D. Manning & Kathleen A. Lamb, Adolescent Well-Being in Cohabiting, Married, and Single-Parent Families, 65 J. MARRIAGE & FAM. 876, 890 (2003).
19. See Sara McLanahan, Elisabeth Donahue & Ron Haskins, Introducing the Issue, 15 The Future of Child. 3 (2005)
20. Mary Parke, Are Married Parents Really Better for Children?, CLASP POLICY BRIEF, May 2003;
21. W. BRADFORD WILCOX ET AL., 2 WHY MARRIAGE MATTERS: TWENTY-SIX CONCLUSIONS FROM THE SOCIAL SCIENCES 6 (2005).
22. BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER 220 (Oxford 1815).
23. See, e.g., Editorial, A Vermont Court Speaks, BOSTON GLOBE, Dec. 22, 1999, at A22 ("[Gay marriage] no more undermine[s] traditional marriage than sailing undermines swimming.").
24. Stanley Kurtz, The End of Marriage in Scandinavia, THE WKLY. STANDARD, Jan. 23, 2004, at 26, available at http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/ Articles/000/000/003/660zypwj.asp.
25. Elizabeth Brake, Minimal Marriage: What Political Liberalism Implies for Marriage Law, 120 ETHICS 302, 332 (2010) (emphasis added).
26. RICHARD DOERFLINGER, FAMILY POLICY IN THE UNITED STATES (1980), available at http://www.usccb.org/prolife/tdocs/FaithfulForLife.pdf;
27. MAGGIE GALLAGHER, THE ABOLITION OF MARRIAGE: HOW WE DESTROY LASTING LOVE (1996);
28. PROMISES TO KEEP: DECLINE AND RENEWAL OF MARRIAGE IN AMERICA (David Popenoe et al. eds., 1996);
29. THE BOOK OF MARRIAGE: THE WISEST ANSWERS TO THE TOUGHEST QUESTIONS (Dana Mack & David Blankenhorn eds. 2001);
30. THE FATHERHOOD MOVEMENT: A CALL TO ACTION (Wade F. Horn et al. eds., 1999);
31. UNITED STATES CONFERENCE OF CATHOLIC BISHOPS, MARRIAGE AND FAMILY LIFE (1975), available at http://www.usccb.org/prolife/programs/rlp/ Marriage&FamilyLife75.pdf;
32. Maggie Gallagher & Barbara Dafoe Whitehead, End No-Fault Divorce?, 75 FIRST THINGS 24 (1997).
33. See THE WITHERSPOON INSTITUTE, supra note 21.
34. They are clearly the primary victims of the erosion that has already taken place. See W. Bradford Wilcox, The Evolution of Divorce, 1 NAT'L AFFAIRS 81, 88-93 (2009).
35. Marc D. Stern, Same-Sex Marriage and the Churches, in SAME-SEX MARRIAGE AND RELIGIOUS LIBERTY: EMERGING CONFLICTS 1, 11-14 (Douglas Laycock et al. eds., 2008). This collection of essays includes the views of scholars on both sides of the same-sex marriage question, who conclude that conflicts with religious liberty are inevitable where marriage is extended to same-sex couples.
36. Maggie Gallagher, Banned in Boston: The Coming Conflict Between Same-Sex Marriage and Religious Liberty, THE WKLY. STANDARD, May 5, 2006, at 20, available at http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/012/ 191kgwgh.asp.
37. Harper v. Poway Unified Sch. Dist., 345 F. Supp. 2d 1096, 1122 (S. D. Cal. 2004).
38. See, e.g., Parker v. Hurley, 514 F.3d 87 (1st Cir. 2008).
39. Monica Hesse, Opposing Gay Unions With Sanity & a Smile, WASH. POST., Aug. 28, 2009, at C01.
40. Andrew Alexander, 'Sanity & a Smile' and an Outpouring of Rage, WASH. POST, Sept. 6, 2009, at A17.
41. Frank Rich, Op-Ed., The Bigots' Last Hurrah, N. Y. TIMES, Apr. 19, 2009 (Week in Review), at 10.
42. See, e.g., HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN, http://www.hrc.org (last visited Nov. 8, 2010) (self-identifying the organization as a 501 (c) (4) advocacy group "working for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender equal rights");
43. Annie Stockwell, Stop the Hate: Vote No on 8, ADVOCATE. COM (Aug. 20, 2008), http://www.advocate.com/Arts-and-Entertainment/People/Stop-the-Hate (framing opposition to California's Proposition Eight, which provides that "only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California", as a struggle against hate).
44. Professor Andrew Koppelman has argued that "[a] sterile person's genitals are no more suitable for generation than an unloaded gun is suitable for shooting. If someone points a gun at me and pulls the trigger, he exhibits the behavior which, as behavior, is suitable for shooting, but it still matters a lot whether the gun is loaded and whether he knows it." ANDREW KOPPELMAN, THE GAY RIGHTS QUESTION IN CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN LAW 87-88 (2002).
45. See Maggie Gallagher, (How) Will Gay Marriage Weaken Marriage as a Social Institution: A Reply to Andrew Koppelman, 2 U. ST. THOMAS L. J. 33, 51-52 (2004).
46. See, e.g., David Boaz, Privatize Marriage: A Simple Soution to the Gay-Marriage Debate, SLATE (Apr. 25, 1997), http://slate.com/id/2440/.
47. Isabel V. Sawhill, Families at Risk, in SETTING NATIONAL PRIORITIES: THE 2000 ELECTION AND BEYOND 97, 108 (Henry J. Aaron & Robert D. Reischauer eds., 1999);
48. see also THE WITHERSPOON INSTITUTE, supra note 21, at 15.
49. DAVID POPENOE, DISTURBING THE NEST: FAMILY CHANGE AND DECLINE IN MODERN SOCIETIES, at xiv-xv (1988);
50. ALAN WOLFE, WHOSE KEEPER? SOCIAL SCIENCE AND MORAL OBLIGATION 132-42 (1989).
51. Beyond Same-Sex Marriage: A New Strategic Vision For All Our Families & Relationships, BEYONDMARRIAGE. ORG (July 26, 2006), http://beyondmarriage. org/full-statement.html.
52. Jessica Bennett, Only You. And You. And You: Polyamory-relationships with multiple, mutually consenting partners-has a coming-out party, NEWSWEEK (July 29, 2009), http://www.newsweek.com/2009/07/28/only-you-and-you-and-you.html.
53. See Hernandez v. Robles, 805 N. Y. S.2d 354, 377 (N. Y. App. Div. 2005) (Saxe, J., dissenting) ("Civil marriage is an institution created by the state....");
54. Andersen v. King Cnty., 138 P.3d 963, 1018 (Wash. 2006) (Fairhurst, J., dissenting) ("[M]arriage draws its strength from the nature of the civil marriage contract itself and the recognition of that contract by the State.").
55. Andrew Sullivan, Introduction, in SAME-SEX MARRIAGE: PRO AND CON: A READER, at xvii, xix (Andrew Sullivan ed., 1st ed. 1997).
56. E. J. GRAFF, Retying the Knot, in SAME-SEX MARRIAGE: PRO AND CON, supra note 93, at 134, 136.
57. ANDREW SULLIVAN, VIRTUALLY NORMAL: AN ARGUMENT ABOUT HOMOSEXUALITY 202-03 (1996).
58. Victoria A. Brownworth, Something Borrowed, Something Blue: Is Marriage Right for Queers?, in I DO/I DON'T: QUEERS ON MARRIAGE 53, 58-59 (Greg Wharton & Ian Philips eds., 2004).
59. Ellen Willis, Can Marriage Be Saved? A Forum, THE NATION, July 5, 2004, at 16, 16.
60. Michelangelo Signorile, Bridal Wave, OUT, Dec.-Jan. 1994, at 68, 161.
61. See generally JONATHAN RAUCH, GAY MARRIAGE: WHY IT IS GOOD FOR GAYS, GOOD FOR STRAIGHTS, AND GOOD FOR AMERICA (2005).
62. DAVID P. MCWHIRTER & ANDREW M. MATTISON, THE MALE COUPLE: HOW RELATIONSHIPS DEVELOP 252-53 (1984).
63. C. H. Mercer et al., Behaviourally bisexual men as a bridge population for HIV and sexually transmitted infections? Evidence from a national probability survey, 20 INT'L J. STD & AIDS 87, 88 (2009).
64. EDWARD O. LAUMANN ET AL., THE SOCIAL ORGANIZATION OF SEXUALITY: SEXUAL PRACTICES IN THE UNITED STATES 314-16 (1994).
65. Scott James, Many Successful Gay Marriages Share an Open Secret, N. Y. TIMES, Jan. 29, 2010, at A17, available at http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/29/us/ 29sfmetro.html?ref=us.
66. Andrew Sullivan, Only the Right Kind of Symbolic Sex, THE DAILY DISH (Aug. 4, 2009, 11:11 AM), http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the-daily-dish/ 2009/08/only-the-right-kind-of-symbolic-sex.html.
67. Many same-sex attracted people who do not support legally recognizing same-sex unions have explored the special value for themselves of deep friendships. See, e.g., John Heard, Dreadtalk: 'Holy Sex & Christian Friendship' John Heard-Life Week 2009 At The University of Sydney-Remarks, DREADNOUGHTS (May 4, 2009, 3:33 PM), http://johnheard.blogspot.com/2009/02/ dreadtalk-holy-sex-christianfriendship.html.
68. For more on the effects of a sexualized culture on friendship, see Anthony Esolen, A Requiem for Friendship: Why Boys Will Not Be Boys & Other Consequences of the Sexual Revolution, 18 TOUCHSTONE MAGAZINE, Sept. 2005, at 21, available at http://www.touchstonemag.com/archives/article.php?id=18-07-021- f.
69. See ARISTOTLE, NICOMACHEAN ETHICS 260 (Terrence Irwin trans., Hackett Pub. Co. 1985).
70. Phyllis Zagano, Nature vs. Nurture, NATIONAL CATHOLIC REPORTER (Sept. 30, 2010), http://ncronline.org/blogs/just-catholic/nature-vs-nurture.
71. John Corvino, Nature? Nurture? It Doesn't Matter, INDEPENDENT GAY FORUM (Aug. 12, 2004), http://igfculturewatch.com/2004/08/12/nature-nurture-itdoesnt- matter/. Professor Corvino's piece deals specifically with the morality of same-sex relations, which is not our topic here. But the same points apply.