Familienpolitik

My classmate Christa Hillstrom, who blogs about human trafficking here, found this article about a new family law in Mali on the United Nations’ Integrated Regional Information Networks news site. Family law in this African country hasn’t changed much since the 1960s, shortly after Mali gained independence from France.

photo by Arriving at the Horizon / http://www.flickr.com

Now female legislators are attempting to get a new code passed that would only recognize civil marriages, give illegitimate children inheritance rights, as well as the right to use the father’s last name, and give couples joint land and property ownership rights.

Several Islamic organizations are against the changes.

In defiance of the soon-to-be-adopted law, Islamic groups are continuing to issue marriage certificates.

Those is support of the new law say that religious marriages don’t protect women from husbands who seek second wives and don’t provide widows with a clear right to inheritance. Although Mali and these issues might seem far away from Massachusetts and the fight for gay marriage rights, both situations make me wonder what marriage is supposed to be about anyway.

I went to a Catholic wedding this weekend and it was clear to me that the religious ceremony and the family celebration were far more important to the couple than the legal marriage. I think this is probably true for most American couples. While many of us spend tens of thousands of dollars on elaborate weddings, a marriage certificate costs less than $100 in every state. And yet for those who do not have the legal right to marriage or for those who are not fully protected by a religious marriage, legal marriage becomes a very big deal.

Is marriage just about establishing the right to inheritance and to someone’s name? What does legal marriage provide for the average couple? And what is the state’s interest in our being legally married?

Tags: family policy, inheritance, Islam, Mali, Marriage, Names, Religion