4 out 10 Births are Out of Wedlock

Marriage amendments are riding a high in referendum elections, but the institution of the family is dying a slow death. 40% of new births are now babies born out of wedlock. Despite the fact that single parent households (the majority of which are headed by women) suffer a multitude of problems, more and more people are chosing to start a family without a commitment to marriage.

Children who only have one parent are more likely to be raised in poverty, do poorly in school, abuse drugs, and spend some time in jail, than those who are raised in a traditional household where both parents are present.

Men and women who choose to live together before marriage are very unlikely to eventually end up married, and of those that do marry, 60% will end up getting divorced. There seems to be no upside to this trend of children being born out of wedlock, yet the trend continues.