Privileging the Privileged? Child Well-Being as a Justification for State Support of Marriage

Authors

Laura S. Adams

Library of Congress Authority File

http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n79122466

Document Type

Article

Abstract

State support of marriage should rest on more than the transformative power of marriage. This article responds to Professor Wilson by questioning whether marriage best promotes child well-being and whether child well-being alone is a sufficient justification to rest state support of marriage. Children of marital households are usually whiter, wealthier, and better educated. Thus, state support of marriage maximizes the welfare of already privileged children at the detriment of less privileged children. Without state support of marriage, social welfare policy can be redirected toward the direct support of children. While Wilson advocates the connection between supporting marriage and supporting children, this author concludes that state support of marriage should require more than the claim of some children?s well-being.

Recommended Citation

Laura S. Adams, Privileging the Privileged? Child Well-Being as a Justification for State Support of Marriage, 42 San Diego L. Rev. 881 (2005).
Available at: https://digital.sandiego.edu/sdlr/vol42/iss3/7