The Nevada Assembly is very close to ending forced child marriage by passing AB 139, a law that bans the practice without any exceptions.
However, Governor Sisolak just indicated that he wants to add in dangerous religious and parental consent loopholes!
Unfortunately, with these loopholes in place, forced child marriage would still be a reality in Nevada because religious parents are usually the ones marrying off their children.
The fate of child brides married off by their parents is worse than Governor Sisolak may realize.
As minors, child brides face legal dead ends. Their parents still have custody rights, and organizations and shelters are unable to interfere with those rights. As a result, these children remain with abusive families and husbands, and they are often removed from school, raped, and live in poverty.
The only way to give child brides the legal right to say “no” to marriage is to eliminate the ability for minors to marry and close religious loopholes to existing laws.
