Modern Family: Coupling and Uncoupling in America
Event
As a society, America is in a moment of great transition regarding how we think about marriage and family life. Gay marriage is becoming mainstream at a speed that surprises even its most optimistic advocates, with a Supreme Court decision expected this month that is certain to bring further changes. Divorce rates are falling and marriages among college-educated, upper middle class people are more stable than they have been in decades, even as marriage rates overall are in decline, particularly among the working class and poor.
These trends raise questions about whether we are seeing widening racial and class divides in the ways that Americans form families. Long term unmarried partnerships are more accepted than ever, yet paradoxically, particularly among the well-educated and well-off, the stigma attached to divorce appears to be increasing. There’s a move afoot to ban permanent alimony—a cause championed by working wives. A recent Pew study found that women are the breadwinners in 40 percent of American households.
Join the New America Foundation on June 12 as we examine complicated questions about race and social class, about the effects of women's growing earning power on family life, about how couples divide domestic responsibilities, and about the ways our gender roles and perceptions are changing, perhaps forever.
Join the conversation online by tweeting @NewAmerica and using #NAFfamily.
Participants