Planned Parenthood, ACLU oppose ban on child marriages
Planned Parenthood and the ACLU opposed a proposed bill by California Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris (D-Orange County) that would have banned child marriages, according to a Monday report.
Currently, California is one of four US states that do not place an age limit on marriage or domestic partnerships. Children may marry with the consent of one parent or guardian and a judge. A study cited by Mercury News found that over 9,000 minors between 15 and 17 years old in California were reported to have married in 2022. Eighty-six percent of these marriages were of underage girls to adult men.
AB 2924 sought to repeal the existing law and ban marriages and domestic partnerships for anyone under 18.
“This bill would repeal the authorization for a person under 18 years of age to be issued a marriage license or to establish a domestic partnership, thereby prohibiting a person under 18 years of age from being issued a marriage license or from establishing a domestic partnership,” said the bill.
Planned Parenthood, ACLU: We want ‘bodily autonomy for all people’
But the legislation faced heavy opposition from organizations such as Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California, ACLU California Action, and the National Center for Youth Law.
“We support what we believe are the intentions of the bill, to address the harms of coerced and abusive relationships on young people and protect them from abuse,” the organizations wrote in a letter. “However, we also strongly believe in and support self-determination and bodily autonomy for all people, including young people who are pregnant and/or parenting.”
Petrie-Norris shot back, saying: “Forced child marriage is a practice that strips children of their autonomy, sexual and reproductive freedom, forces them into adulthood prematurely and shields rapists from criminal charges — so I find opponents’ arguments a bit ironic and misplaced — particularly when they have supported the same legislation in other states,” Petrie-Norris said.
Ash Kalra, who heads the California Assembly’s judiciary committee, also opposed the bill in its original form. Kalra supported amendments that would have allowed 16 and 17 year olds to get married through court petitions, which Petrie-Norris said was an unacceptable compromise.
“I have tremendous respect for the lived experience of the survivors and advocates who I was working with on this bill,” she said. “After considering our options for this legislative session, I decided to pause the bill rather than move forward with a compromise proposal that they do not support.”
