Polygamy is a constitutional right. By making it illegal, our lawmakers violated the will of our Founding Fathers

Article 3, Bill of Rights; The First Amendment 

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..."

Polygamy - more specifically, polygyny (the act of having more than one wife) - is core in a multitude of religions. Laws that go against polygamy prohibit citizens from fully practicing their religions.

"A government can't interfere with a person's religious beliefs except when the religious practice violates certain notions of healthy, safety and morality."

--Reynolds v. United States (1879), THE FIRST AMENDMENT ENCYCLOPEDIA

Now, I understand that in some cases, if the aspect of a said religion breaks the law, and that aspect threatens the safety of our society, then we simply cannot make an exception for it. An example of this is human sacrifice, which can fall under murder. However, polygamy does not threaten anyone's safety, as it is simply the act of having more than one spouse. 

However, unfortunately, in Reynolds v. United States (1879), Senate ruled that banning polygamy will not threaten the first amendment, despite polygamy not violating health or safety.

Analysis of Amendments (From the fight for LGBTQ+ Rights)

"The right to privacy, or "the right to be left alone," is guaranteed by the Fourth, Fifth, Ninth and Fourteenth Amendments. In 1965, Griswold v. Connecticut struck down a state law that prohibited married couples from obtaining contraceptives, citing "zones of privacy." In 1967, Loving v. Virginia decriminalized interracial marriage. The 1972 Eisenstadt v. Baird decision recognized unmarried persons' right to contraceptives. And in 1973, Roe v. Wade recognized women's right to reproductive choice. All of these Supreme Court decisions underscore the principle that decisions about intimate relationships are personal and should be left up to the individual."

--THE RIGHTS OF LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL AND TRANSGENDER PEOPLE

This was the logic used to validate the amendments that gave the LGBTQ+ community rights. This logic can also be used to validate polygamous marriage and polyamorous dating. 

 

 

So, if polygamous marriage is a constitutional right, why was it even made illegal, to begin with?

Bigamy

Our lawmakers mistook polygamy (the act of having more than one spouse with their knowledge) with bigamy (the act of taking on another spouse while married, without their knowledge). 

Bigamy is a shameful act and can be considered a higher level of cheating. However, polygamy is an intimate relationship that can bring 3, 4, and many more people together without deception.

Polygyny

Our lawmakers are also being influenced by those who cannot tell the difference between Polygamy (♾️Spouses), Polygyny (♾️Wives), and Polyandry (♾️Husbands).

The United Nations Human Rights Committee influenced laws against polygamy across the globe because, supposedly, “polygamy violates the dignity of women.” That's polygyny. 

Polygyny can violate women, as it happens in Islamic countries, but that's why we have marriage laws in place in the US. If a relationship is suspected to violate a member of the union, it's possible to take legal action. The US already has precautions in place, so why not use them?

 

In summary, there is no valid reason to ban polygamy, and the current laws impede our rights as citizens. If we love more than one person, we should have the right to marry both of them, instead of giving up one for the other. If we built up a relationship with more than one person, we should have the right to take the next step without leaving someone behind. If we want to parent our children together, in our polyfamory, we should have the right to be legal guardians to each other's children, granted by marriage.

 

As the LGBTQ+ movement said, "Love is love!"