Dressed in bridal gowns and chains, we and our allies gathered at the Michigan State Capitol Thursday to urge Michigan legislators to pass HB4297-4302/SB209-217 & SB246, the simple, commonsense bill package that would end child marriage in Michigan.
Speakers included:
- Sen. Sarah Anthony, legislative champion
- Rep. Kara Hope, legislative champion
- Rep. Helena Scott, legislative champion
- Fraidy Reiss, Founder/Executive Director, Unchained At Last
- Becca Powell, Director of Advocacy and Outreach, Unchained At Last
- Denise Sylvester, Co-Chair, Zonta International District 15
- Michele Hanash, Director of Policy and Women’s Programs, AHA Foundation
- Courtney Kosnik, child marriage survivor
- Arlene Nyhof, child marriage survivor
- Nina Van Harn, forced marriage survivor
Our Chain-In drew the attention of passersby and news media, including MLive, WLNS-TV 6, WILX, WWMT News Channel 3, UpNorthLive and more.
We at Unchained started and now lead a growing national movement to end child marriage in the United States by making the marriage age 18, no exceptions, in all 50 states.
Marriage before 18 can too easily be forced, because minors, even a day before their 18th birthday, have limited legal rights that make resisting or escaping an unwanted marriage nearly impossible. Further, marriage before 18 is a human rights abuse that destroys American girls’ health, education and economic opportunities and greatly increases their risk of experiencing violence.
One of the strategies we use in our push to end this human rights abuse is the Chain-In. Read more here about this powerful form of peaceful protest, which we have staged in multiple U.S. states.