Between 2000 and 2015, at least 207,468 children were married in the U.S., and 3,285 or more of those cases were in Oregon and mostly involved girls married to adult men.
Recently, Delaware became the first and only state to outlaw all marriage under the age of 18. In all other U.S. states, minors can marry through legal loopholes, and often there is no minimum age for marriage.
In Oregon, 17-year-olds can marry with parental consent. This law fails to address the fact that when a child is forced to marry, the perpetrators are almost always the parents.
All child marriage should be eliminated in Oregon. This issue is not about emotional maturity, but rather legal capacity. Minors under 18 lack the legal rights to safely navigate a marriage. They cannot easily enter a domestic violence shelter, retain an attorney or file a legal action in their own name.
The law requires that youth shelters inform parents of the whereabouts of their children, which puts victims in danger if their parents are complicit in the abuse. Child Protective Services will often not intervene in child marriages if the parents consent to the marriage.
Child marriage can also have devastating effects on health, education and economic opportunities.
As a group of high school juniors and seniors, we urge our legislators to end child marriage in Oregon. It is a threat to the safety and freedom of our peers.
Eloise Parish Mueller, president
South Eugene High School
Unchained Club
A Note From the Publisher
Dear Readers,
The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.
That’s because of you!
Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.
Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.
We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.
And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.
None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.
As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.
Thank you for standing with us!
Publisher
Eugene Weekly
P.S. If you’d like to talk about supporting EW, I’d love to hear from you!
jody@eugeneweekly.com
(541) 484-0519
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