Before the 1960s, it was really hard to get divorced in America.
Typically, the only way to do it was to convince a judge that your spouse had committed some form of wrongdoing, like adultery, abandonment, or “cruelty” (that is, abuse). This could be difficult: “Even if you could prove you had been hit, that didn’t necessarily mean it rose to the level of cruelty that justified a divorce,” said Marcia Zug, a family law professor at the University of South Carolina.
Then came a revolution: In 1969, then-Gov. Ronald Reagan of California (who was himself divorced) signed the nation’s first no-fault divorce law, allowing people to end their marriages without proving they’d been wronged. The move was a recognition that “people were going to get out of marriages,” Zug said, and gave them a way to do that without resorting to subterfuge. Similar laws soon swept the country, and rates of domestic violence and spousal murder began to drop as people — especially women — gained more freedom to leave dangerous situations.
Today, however, a counter-revolution is brewing: Conservative commentators and lawmakers are calling for an end to no-fault divorce, arguing that it has harmed men and even destroyed the fabric of society. Oklahoma state Sen. Dusty Deevers, for example, introduced a bill in January to ban his state’s version of no-fault divorce. The Texas Republican Party added a call to end the practice to its 2022 platform (the plank is preserved in the 2024 version). Federal lawmakers like Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) and House Speaker Mike Johnson, as well as former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson, have spoken out in favor of tightening divorce laws.
As a woman in the United States I feel like I’m constantly fighting against the political future (if not the practical reality of) the handmaid’s tale.
Show or book, whatever medium floats your boat it is powerful and real and speaks so much of similar lived experiences… it should be consumed, digested, and change you after. That is my favorite type of media.
But also it is a sort of coping mechanism cuz I 100% can see the show or book happening. And while this seems off topic yeah it all starts with religion dictating law based on their morals which gee… I sure see the church. But never Christ.
So familiar.
Oops realized I didn’t answer your question and I noticed lemmy doesn’t have great track record of showing edits.
So yeah I was curious cuz as an American I still don’t get it. Ca Gov Regan passed no fault divorce and we are arguing about it fucking 50 years later because maybe someone haves to give away too much money/property? I fucking hate it.
crazy how if you outlaw getting a divorce then marital status remains the same (until someone ends up mysteriously dead in a river)
i cant believe we have to deal with this i am so tired
Then marriage becomes a jail. How can she escape if he is an asshole? Unfaithful? Violent? But that’s maybe the point?
definitely is the point
I can understand that you feel that way, is there any of your rights that seems safe? And from what I can gather there’s not a majority behind those changes - it’s a religious minority that one side needs in order to get a majority that is allowed to dictate this direction?
I haven’t seen The Handmaids Tale, but I’ve heard it’s good, and I’ve put it on my watchlist.