>> The House in the state of Louisiana has refused to pass legislation that would ban
child marriages.
Or at least have a age restriction, an age restriction where someone where someone would
have to be at least 16 years old in order to get married.
Right now there is no restriction at all in the state of Louisiana.
And while the Senate wanted to do something about it, the state House was like, not so
fast.
So to give you the details, the Senate crafted a bill by Senator Yvonne Dorsey Colomb, a
Baton Rouge Democrat, that would bar anyone under 16 years old from being able to marry
in the state.
With those who are 16 years old or 17 years old unable to marry someone who is more than
four years older than they are.
So there's two different parts of this, right?
First of all, if you're under 16, you don't get to get married in the state of Louisiana,
which I think makes a lot of sense.
The second portion is, well, if you are 16, you're not allowed to marry someone who's
like 35.
Because that just, there are issues there, for obvious reasons.
So while the Senate was in favor of this, it did stall in the state House.
The House refused that idea, instead rewriting the legislation to continue requiring parental
consent for anyone under 18 to marry.
A judicial review process would be required before anyone under 16 years old could get
married.
So what is the rationale behind this?
Well first, I wanna hear from State Representative Landry, who is siding with the House here,
in refusing to pass the common sense legislation.
Let's hear what she has to say.
>> What if they're pregnant?
And is there an exception for allowing a judge, or is there a parent?
Why couldn't two 16-year-olds get married if they had a baby?
>> Under this they would have to wait until they're 17 and they could get married.
>> And why would we want that policy that would not provide for the child having the
benefit of being born in a marriage?
I don't see that as a good state policy.
If they're both 16 years old and they can consent to sexual relations at 16, and they're
about to have a baby.
Why wouldn't we want them to be married?
>> Yeah, I mean- >> I know couples who are married now who
got married at 16, and had successful marriages.
>> No, you don't.
No, you don't.
I don't think that it's impossible, but no, I just don't believe her.
And secondly, I think that the occurrence of two 16-year-olds who, in her mind, having
a child having a child out of wedlock is way worse than passing legislation that would
protect the vast majority of children that get exploited under the lack of regulation
here, right?
To her, it's like, but we could prevent teenagers from having children out of wedlock.
We can encourage them to get married at 16.
First of all, you should be thinking about ways to prevent the 16-year-old from getting
pregnant, through comprehensive sex education.
>> Contraceptives.
>> Making birth control available and accessible.
But anyway, those are just my thoughts.
What do you guys think?
>> No, you're absolutely right.
That whole push for marriage and being married, that's actually pushing the biblical morals
on people again.
And kind of just doing it in the little coded way, but also, this is child marriage.
They can't rent a car, they can't lawfully sign a contract.
They're children, this is problematic.
Not only are they robbing their youth from these young people.
But they're continuing to create this system, essentially, where girls are kept from getting
education that they need.
They also end up being separated from their family.
70% to 80% of these marriages under the age of 18, they end up in divorce.
There is a lot of loss and a lot of suffering and also these statistics for spousal abuse.
It triples the chances of spousal abuse, it doubles teens' chances of living in poverty
when they get married under the age of 18.
So let's all really think about this.
It doesn't serve the child's best interest, so why do it?
>> I feel like we're going backwards.
>> We are.
>> Definitely.
>> We're going from The Handmaid's Tale to the Hunger Games, all this stuff is.
I was forced to get married because I got pregnant and I'm divorced.
I think about this stuff and I'm like yeah, they can get married but they can't buy a
beer.
>> No.
>> And it's so ridiculous because- >> And sometimes you need that beer to deal
with your husband.
>> To deal with your husband.
>> Yeah, thank you.
>> Just to take the edge off.
I'm just kidding, my husband's great.
>> He is, he is.
You know what I think about is, I know it sounds conspiracy theory-esk or whatever.
But a lot of these laws are to benefit these old white men who have been able to do whatever
they want with whoever is beneath them.
And a lot of times, these young girls are the currency that's being exchanged, and it's
just preposterous.
This lady's sitting there, pushing, like you said, her religious, here we go again with
you pushing that religious perspective on people who may not very well believe in that.
But it's just like setting young girls back.
>> Absolutely, absolutely and some more stats that I like for this.
Well, I do not like the stats, but people get married under 18, girls 50% more likely
to dropped out at school.
And also girls 15 to 19, twice as likely to die in childbirth than a woman in her 20s.
>> But the right wing is really pro-life.
>> God.
>> Keep that in perspective.
>> And they have a 12-year-old got married in Louisiana.
>> Yes.
>> Their brain isn't fully developed.
>> Come on, no.
>> It doesn't happen till you're older.
>> And the way that she really framed that question, did you see the black woman was
so frustrated?
>> Yes.
>> She was.
>> She was like, >> You saw her change in stance.
>> It's amazing, because again, on one hand, when it comes to the abortion debate, they'll
claim that they wanna protect children.
>> Yes.
>> In this case, you literally have children who need to be protected and they are not
willing to protect them.
>> Nope and it just allows sexual predators to conceal rape and assault and to dominate
these children.
>> Yes.
>> Who can't make decision for themselves, they should be with their family.
And also we hear stories of mothers dealing away their children for drugs and all of these
things going no where kids are abused.
So essentially, again as you pointed out Ida, it's essentially allowing children to be used
as currency.
And it's not okay and it is backwards, cuz what, New Jersey passed a law, Delaware, that
it's illegal to be married under the age of 18.
And I'm cool with that, we can even raise it to 25, or maybe 35.
>> Come on.
>> And I'm tired of that argument that I know people that got married when, you know what?
There was a time when men used to hit women all over their heads with rocks and drag them
into a cave.
We've evolved, stop using what happened back in the day where people didn't have a choice.
Women didn't have a choice.
>> Yes.
>> And have stayed, they've just rode it out with the person that they were with.
Because they've been brainwashed to believe that that's what they're supposed to do.
And stop trying to impose that on the future.
>> Exactly.
>> Let the future blossom for-
>> And any anecdotal evidence means nothing, right?
You have to look at the broader treads, which Adrian did and gave you those statistics of
what's likely to happen.
If you know one, maybe two, couples who are were highs chool sweethearts, they got married
young and they're doing fine now, great.
But that is an exception.
>> Yeah.
>> Which proves the rule.
So when- >> And they're probably lying to everybody,
cuz we know these people drink copious amounts at night to be able to tolerate one another.
>> And they sleep in separate beds, like Lucy and Ricky.
>> Exactly, and they have the little side pieces and what not.
>> Now we're adding our own stuff to it.
>> But that's fine, that's fine.
>> No, we're doing what they're doing.
>> That's true.
>> You wanna take us back there, we'll go back there with you.
Fred and Wilma, >> Hey.
>> They don't sleep in the same bed, here we go.