Should child marriage still be legal in the State of Oklahoma?
Rep. Emily King from OU will be presenting OU-515 in the House later today regarding child marriage.
Oklahoma law allows teenagers 16 and older to get married if a parent or legal guardian consents or through a court order. Anyone younger than 16 must obtain a court order to get married.
“I’ve been aware of Oklahoma’s marriage laws for a while,” Rep. King said. “I didn’t write the bill initially because there was an actual bill being debated by the Oklahoma House and I wanted to see if it would pass. Unfortunately, it failed with a significant amount of nays.”
According to AP News, the Oklahoma House of Representatives rejected a bill that would have stripped from parents and legal guardians of minors the legal power to consent to their marriages. The bill would have required teens ages 16 and 17 who want to get married to seek emancipation first, which a court must approve.
According to the Pew Research Center, about 57,800 minors in the U.S. ages 15 to 17 married as of 2014. The rate of child marriage varies widely by state. It is most common in states like West Virginia and Texas, but Oklahoma is ranked 4th in the nation in teen marriage rates.
With Rep. King’s bill, this would get rid of all expectations and only allow any unmarried person who is at least 18 years old consenting to marriage with a person of the opposite sex.
“I believe that child marriage is a human rights issue,” Rep. King said. “Children — including 16-year-olds, cannot legally consent.”
Rep. King will present OU-515 to the House later today.
Piper Reese (OSU) Reporting: 11/12/2020