Something unusual and quite good happened when President Biden signed the Covid relief bill, the American Rescue Plan, into law on March 11, 2021. The needs of a group of Americans who are typically ignored, single adults with no children, were recognized and addressed. Maybe you haven’t heard anything about this. In some of the […]

What if we wanted all Americans to be economically secure—what would that take? In an important article, “Uncoupling,” just published in the Spring 2021 issue of the Arizona State Law Journal, professors Naomi Cahn and June Carbone offer an answer: Benefits need to be uncoupled from marriage and employment. It is perhaps the most fundamental […]

Under the law, only some groups get protected from discrimination. An important question is, who should get protected? What factors should matter? In a 2014 Stanford Law Review article, “Compulsory sexuality,” Elizabeth F. Emens addressed a related question: What factors actually do matter?

[Bella’s intro: I am grateful to everyone who advocates for unmarried equality. Craig Wynne, who discussed his book, How to Be a Happy Bachelor, here, is one of those people. Better still, he teaches his students to recognize policies and practices that are unfair to single people and to do something about them. In this […]

An in-depth study of 4 European nations documents the ways in which people living a conventionally coupled life are systematically advantaged, formally and informally. The authors think that should change, and they suggest ways of protecting and supporting people living outside of conventional coupledom. In an important new book, The Tenacity of the Couple-Norm, five […]

A study of more than 17,000 married people found that those dependent on a spouse for health insurance were less likely to divorce Here at Unmarried America, we believe that no one should have to marry to get access to something so fundamental as health insurance. And yet, there is evidence that some people do […]

Some stigmatized groups, such as gays and lesbians, make progress in pushing back against the stigma when they see themselves as part of a group. Historically, that could mean participating in a social movement, but there can be progress even short of that. Identifying with other people like you, feeling a bond with them, and […]

I fear that single people who are not seniors and who have no children are among the most underserved populations in the United States. When they are in need, they may have more trouble getting help than seniors or families that include children.

Of all the people President-Elect Joe Biden has chosen to fill top positions in his administration, one has become a special target of criticism and bickering. Neera Tanden is Biden’s pick to lead the Office of Management and Budget, an agency described by the Washington Post as playing “a crucial role in setting the president’s […]

It is a daunting and frustrating endeavor, trying to transform the U.S. into a more just place for people who are single. As other groups, such as sexual minorities, make significant strides toward equality, unmarried Americans are again and again left ignored and unprotected. Something has been shifting over the past decade or so, though, […]