Marriage already has a definition, whether you believe it or not. Webster's Dictionary in 2002 defined it primarily as "the state of being united to a person of the opposite sex as husband or wife in a consensual and contractual relationship recognized by law."
Although debating whether to redefine marriage is an interesting topic, it is far from being the most important. People who cite the old dictionary definition are worried because they don't want to be considered discriminatory. Who does? After all, it's not enough to be "against" an issue; you actually have to stand up for something.
That "something" is a topic that has been ignored, perhaps deliberately, for far too long: the breakdown of the American family. This is not a moral or religious debate. The studies and facts speak for themselves.
A basic human fact: Dysfunctional families are hard on kids. My brother-in-law is a teacher in an inner-city public school. He can tell which kids come from dysfunctional families just by observing how they act in the classroom. The ones that are aggressive, hyperactive and in constant need of attention are usually the ones who aren't shown love from their homes. It's another fact that teens from non-intact families face much higher risks of smoking, drug use, depression, teenage pregnancy, crime, etc.
Social fact: Communities with high percentages of single-parent households are significantly associated with high percentages of burglary and other violent crime. Race or poverty doesn't even play a determining factor. Studies consistently show that even in crime-ridden neighborhoods, the crime rate for married, two-parent families is very low in contrast to the high crime rate for families in chaotic and dysfunctional relationships.
National fact: America is on a cultural decline, some say since the 1960s. Though once widely admired, the world opinion of the United States is steadily decreasing. It just so happens there were also other cultural shifts in the 1960s: the Sexual Revolution and start of declining marriage rates.
Historical fact: Every known civilization in history flourished when it had strong, traditional families. When that family structure crumbled, the civilization then collapsed within three generations, without exception.
Evidence is overwhelming: Stable families are extremely important. The issue didn't start with how to define marriage. It goes back a lot farther. It's about time we remember that and stop the family decline. After all, if historical trends prove true, that would make us the last significant American generation. But we don't have to be.
Hiromitsu Masuda is a senior in business and human resources. He can be reached at hiromitsu.9@osu.edu.
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