Persecution or Prosecution
Disclaimer: I am a Mormon. I do not support the practice of polygamy as a religious proscription. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (the real Mormons) have not condoned the practice for over a hundred years. In fact, the Church has very diligently cleansed itself of polygamous sympathizers. I do not sympathize with the FLDS group (a breakaway from the Church at about the time the Church stopped the practice) in that I do not think that they are doctrinally correct by practicing polygamy.
Having said all that, what is occurring in Texas is religious persecution. The phone call was all that was needed for authorities to sweep in with all the firepower and grand standing of Waco and kidnap children and women, virtually putting an end to an unpopular religious sect. If they were really worried about the sexual abuse, they would have carefully sought out the men and mothers who were actively participatory in such abuse, and left the rest alone. But no. In all their religious zeal, social workers, law enforcement officers, and Baptist bus drivers "rescued" these poor, misguided, 19th Century homemakers and children from a life of protection against the outside evils of the world, throwing them instead into our "enlightened" society with its permissive promiscuity, wink-wink religiosioty, and "our young'uns' well-being is so important to us we leave them with a stranger 10 hours a day so we can afford our brick-and-granite mansions with no yard just to keep up with the Joneses" mentality.
It is interesting that we forbid gay marriage, but we permit homosexual and adulterous activities, fraught with dangerous diseases, broken families and bastardized children, and child sexual abuse; 
yet we outlaw polygamy, the emphasis of which is about strengthening and supporting the family and caring for children. Yes, it carries with it the potential for child abuse as is alleged in this case, but so does any relationship where children are involved. Child abuse happens. It should be pursued and prosecuted to the full extent of the law, because we do not like child abusers. Children are special and sacred.
I am not advocating that we should sanction polygamy, just as I do not advocate that we should sanction homosexual marriage. Marriage is between one man and one woman. But we do not outlaw homosexual activity, nor even adulterous activity. Why do we outlaw polygamy? Because we are a religiously intolerant people. We have our First Amendment, and sometimes it means something. But majority religions have always felt threatened by minority religions. So as long we keep such statutes on the books, we can summon the power of the State to swoop in to put an end to these unpopular sects and organizations that challenge any beliefs with we have become so comfortable.
When the Church fought the anti-bigamy laws in the courts, they argued First Amendment issues. Today, there is a stronger case for Fourteenth Amendment Equal Protection arguments. It will be interesting to see how all this plays out. I can see Supreme Court arguments on the matter. Although I do not know whether they would prevail, I think they could be very compelling.
4 comments:
I think it's rediculous that every single child was seperated from both parents and still are. The women have returned, so why not the children? I read an article that said the kids are polite and enjoy chores and ask to help the social workers/caregivers clean. What is wrong with our society that thinks it's okay to keep all of them apart for so long? I don't remember a big scene like this when the Amish teenagers have broken away and revealed sexual abuse in their communities. It's just sad when particular groups are picked apart like this.
I couldn't agree more, Boots. PJ told me that Dr. Phil is advocating schools and programs to teach these kids how to live in modern society. As if there is really something wrong with the old way of doing things. We don't seem all that anxious to interfere with the Amish way of life. In fact, we idealize it in books and movies, almost with a reverence and awe. So, there was sexual abuse in this polygamous community. Clean out the perpetrators, hold them to the laws governing marrying age and consent, and then return them to their compound to continue their chosen way of life.
How parents raise their children is fundamental right, which the Supreme Court has found numerous times to be guaranteed by the Constitution. Any governmental efforts to "modernize" these children without the consent of the parents is a violation of these people's civil rights.
The problem is that the marriage of young girls who cannot consent seems to be a tenet of the church, not just the practice of a few wayward members. That's the difference between the amish abuse case and this situation. In fact, you could argue equal protection from the other side, that the government is simply enforcing laws that non-FLDS members would certainly be prosecuted under. The Constitution certainly guarantees equal protection to the children via state law.
The government never promised first amendment freedom of religion to churches and sects that violate state law on a widespread basis. Again, this is not like the amish or catholic abuse cases, where wayward members violate laws and are condemned by church and state. The religion itself seems to hold dear this practice and condone it, encourage it. The health, welfare and safety of the children is an overriding interest to their parents' freedom to practice it.
It doesn't help that their leader is currently imprisoned for accomplice to rape- just another indication that the practice is fundamental to the religion. Many of the parents and husbands could be prosecuted for statutory rape or accomplice to such.
I dunno, maybe they're getting a worse rap than they deserve and we're all misinterpreting their beliefs. The media sure has pounced on it.
Anyway, the ACLU agrees with you :)
P.S. allowing polygamous marriage is a slippery slope. once we condone the idea of marriage as anything besides one man/one woman, it will become anything - 2 men, 2 women, etc. There are groups who would like to legalize marriage between siblings and family members. There's no reason to devalue marriage more than it already has been through divorce and general moral decline. After all, families are forever.
I don't see how the allowance of homosexual activity is a good reason to allow polygamy. it's a good reason to allow men to date and sleep with lots of different women, and they do. When same sex couples can legally marry eachother and get all the benefits associated with that, we'll see other marriage laws change too, and case after case will wind up in the high courts arguing for basically "whatever goes."
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