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Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Speaking Out For the Polygamous Freedom to Marry

The piece on a television station's website began with this shocking statement…

Not all polygamists live in walled compounds or wear dresses. Many live among us in normal neighborhoods and wear normal clothes.

Okay, so it isn’t really shocking. It is what I’ve said all along. Those who are being denied marriage equality are your neighbors, you coworkers, your teachers, your police officers, your firefighters.

Anne Wilde is one of those women. She said the bond between sister wives is a good thing. She is dedicated to educating others about plural families and their culture.

Good for her!

Wilde said there are many families in the Salt Lake area living among us, but living in silence.

That’s wrong, that people would have to hide their love.

Wilde was married for nine years in a monogamous relationship. After a divorce, she remarried into a plural family. She was a sister wife for 33 years, until her husband’s recent death.

Kim Kardashian can get married on television for 72 days, and it is all legal. But Wilde was married for thirty-three years without legal recognition, or full freedom. This is a horrible inequality.

“Please don't criticize us for forming a family. We are not breaking any other law, we're tax payers, we're not abusive to our children, and there's no domestic violence.”

Wilde is the co-author of the book “Voices in Harmony” and co-founder of the non profit organization “Principle Voices.”

She’s another example of why we need full marriage equality.

Meanwhile, the Dargers report the positive results of coming out

We wanted to find out how "coming out" has changed things for Joe, Alina, Valerie, Vickie and their children so, we went to visit with the family at their Herriman home.

Don: "Since you went on television and went public, what has changed?"
Alina: "I had some people come up and say wow - I never knew." "We've had a lot of people from all over the country reach out and identify with us and just say this is a different side of polygamy that I didn't know existed."
Joe: "Its been very liberating for me."
Vickie: "Some of the moms have come up and said, I think its great and I support you and I dont have any problem with your lifestyle. I feel like it has been mostly positive."

But the bigots will be bigots…

Don: "Have you lost clients or customers since this changed."
Joe: "We had a person write a comment in the paper, oh, I know him and I will never do business with him again."

A woman should be free to marry a married man, or another woman, or her own sister, or all three. How does that hurt anyone else?

In light of today's ruling by the B.C. court, be sure to check out the list of Discredited Arguments against freedoms to marry and full marriage equality, and good answers to them.
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