Many Americans believe that child marriage only happens in other countries. In reality, research reveals that nearly 315,000 children as young as 10 were married in the U.S. between 2000 and 2021 – mostly girls wed to adult men. Furthermore, child marriage remains legal and practiced in 33 U.S. states. Existing states with protections only began passing legislation in 2017, starting with Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Rhode Island, and New York. Even with the new “No Child Marriage Under 18, No Exceptions” laws, children continue to be forced into marriages due to insufficient local and federal efforts to nationalize this legislation.
The American Medical Association has called for an end to Child Marriage stating “Child marriage is associated with higher rates of sexually transmitted infections, early pregnancies, divorce, and intimate partner violence when compared to women married at age 21 or older.” In addition, child marriage adversely affects the victim’s health, education, and employment opportunities.
This is why we have partnered with Global Hope 365, a nonprofit organization that aims to end child marriage through education and advocacy. To reach Sunrise For Children’s goal of ending human trafficking globally, we must begin with ending child marriage to protect our children in the United States. We ask you to support our campaign by completing this form to advocate for “No Child Marriage under 18, No Exceptions” laws.
Letter Writing Campaign
California Residents
Click here to become part of the movement to end child marriage.
Residents of Other States
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