We’re Still Searching for the Couple Who’s Been Married the Longest

Marriage,

In February we plan to hold a reception at the Governor’s Mansion in Little Rock to honor the couple in Arkansas who has been married the longest. We also will recognize the nine other couples who have been married almost as long.

At this point, all the couples who are in the running for Arkansas’ Longest-Married Couple have been married more than 72 years. That’s truly amazing!

It’s not every day you meet a husband and wife who have been together more than 70 years, but when you do, there is something very special about it.

If you know a couple who has been married more than 72 years, I hope you will nominate them for Arkansas’ Longest-Married Couple by emailing Ken Yang at ken@familycouncil.org or calling the Family Council office at (501) 375-7000.

Photo Credit: By Jeff Belmonte from Cuiabá, Brazil (Flickr) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.

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State Still Dealing With Fallout From Bad U.S. Supreme Court Ruling

Family, Marriage, ,

According to recent news reports, the State of Arkansas is still dealing with fallout from a bad ruling the U.S. Supreme Court issued last summer.

In June the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the State of Arkansas must list two “mothers” on a child’s birth certificate if the child’s birth mother is legally married to another woman. The ruling overturned a good decision the Arkansas Supreme Court handed down last December.

The State is currently struggling to come up with a way to amend its laws and comply with the Supreme Court’s order.

As we said last summer, the U.S. Supreme Court is asking Arkansas to ignore basic facts about biology. Birth certificates exist to record that a child was born and who the child’s biological parents are presumed to be.

As the Arkansas Supreme Court correctly noted last year, no child can have two biological mothers, but the Arkansas Department of Health is being forced to operate as if that is possible.

The U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling treats the names that appear on birth certificates like some sort of marriage benefit. Birth certificates are issued for the sake of children — not for the sake of adults. They are not simply pieces of paper. They are vital records that need to be accurate and deserve respect. We should not let them become mere political ploys in the ongoing debates about marriage.

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U.S. Supreme Court Upends Arkansas Supreme Court’s Good Birth Certificate Ruling

Family, Marriage, , ,

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, June 26, 2017

LITTLE ROCK, AR – On Tuesday the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the State of Arkansas must list two “mothers” on a child’s birth certificate if the child’s birth mother is legally married to another woman. The ruling overturned a good decision the Arkansas Supreme Court handed down last December.

Family Council President Jerry Cox issued a statement saying, “The U.S. Supreme Court is asking Arkansas to ignore basic facts about biology. Birth certificates exist to record that a child was born and who the child’s biological parents are presumed to be. As the Arkansas Supreme Court correctly noted last year, no child can have two biological mothers, but the Arkansas Department of Health will now be forced to operate as if that is possible because of this court ruling.”

Cox said the ruling sets a dangerous precedent. “The U.S. Supreme Court is treating the names that appear on birth certificates like some sort of marriage benefit. Birth certificates are issued for the sake of children—not for the sake of adults. They are not simply pieces of paper. They are vital records that need to be accurate and deserve respect. We should not let them become mere political ploys in the ongoing debates about marriage.”

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Photo Credit: By Brian Turner (Flickr: My Trusty Gavel) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.

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