No Appeal of Anti-Equality Court Ruling in Canada

Someday, both Canadians and Americans will look back in shame at having fought against full marriage equality. Those who are on the right side of history await everyone else. Here's what I last wrote about this case.

A lawyer who argued to decriminalize polygamy will not be appealing the court’s decision to uphold Canada’s 120-year-old anti-polygamy law, it was announced Wednesday.

“A legal publication suggested recently that (lawyer George Macintosh) had decided to appeal. That report was erroneous,” a statement released by his office said.

This is disappointing.

However, attorneys general at federal and provincial levels still have the power to revisit the case in court if they choose.

The ruling, issued in late November by Justice Robert Bauman, found polygamy was still harmful to children and women and they far outweighed the religious freedoms of Mormons.

Abusive people are harmful to children and women, not consensual polygamy.

In his original findings, he said women in polygamous marriages are at a higher risk of physical and psychological harm, domestic violence and abuse, and sexual abuse.

Higher than what, I wonder? Higher than in unmarried cohabitation? Many professing monogamists have been abusive. Women who live alone and never date or marry can’t ever be abused by a spouse; should we outlaw marriage and cohabitation entirely? Or is this really about "We have ours, to hell with everyone else?"

Competition between co-wives for a husband’s attention also leads to depression and mental health issues, low self-esteem and marital dissatisfaction.

I know unmarried women who are depressed, have mental health issues, low self-esteems, and relationship dissatisfaction. But the charge here deals only with polygyny. What about polyandry, or an equal number of males and females, or same-sex polygamy? Why should people in those polycules be denied their right to marry?

Young brides also suffer health issues from early sexual activity and pregnancies.

Well thank goodness there is no early sexual activity and pregnancies in young women/girls anywhere in Canadian society outside of those insular FLDS communities. And if only we had some laws against sex with underage girls. And by all means, if a young woman gets pregnant and gives birth, she is always going to be better off without a spouse. (Can you hear the sarcasm?)

Children in polygamous families are also known to suffer emotional, behavioural and physical problems and have higher infant mortality rates and lower educational.

There’s way too much shoddy correlation expressed in this article. These are standard excuses for denying this freedom to marry and full marriage equality. If these FLDS communities are filled with abusers and organized conspiracies, then do something about the people involved in those things; don’t deny everyone the polygamous freedom to marry. It would be easier to do something about the abusers if consensual relationships in the community weren't criminalized.