Why Not Polygamy?

Abstract

The advent of sexual liberty, calls for religious freedom, and rights to privacy have made the case for legalizing polygamy especially complicated. No longer are arguments against polygamy limited to those that speak to the injustice suffered by young women and children; men, too, suffer from polygamous relationships. Western legal tradition finds the foundational grounds to prohibit polygamy as behavior that is 'malum in se,' or inherently evil in itself. While some religious communities positively embrace polygamy, there will always be regimes of repression. Polygamy would unduly set family law on a slippery slope to female subordination, strained family resources and limited legal protections to children who enter polygamous marriages. 

Keywords: Polygamy, Marriage, Family, Sex, Sexual Liberty, Religious Liberty