Choose to Stand with Children

Promote the Centrality and Integrity of Marriage
for Children and Society

Because Having a Mother and Father is
Common and Good

The issue of same-sex "marriage" is just a symptom of something much deeper in society. It is a monumental challenge to the fundamental understanding of the human person, and the meaning of marriage and family -- the foundation of society and the future of our children.

The stakes for our children and the future of society are huge and are poorly understood. In essence, the effort to redefine marriage and family is really a conflict between the powerful special interests of a small group of adults, and the common interest of every child without exception in the marriage of their mother and father. This is something that is already affecting every family as described below.

For almost forty years, this battle has been waged defensively on terms established by the feminist and gay rights movement resulting in incremental public policy changes effecting curricula in schools, and relationships between people. Marriage, family and human sexuality have been slowly redefined to the point where four out of ten children are born out of wedlock and many intentionally being deprived of their fathers.

Children are powerless to stand up for their interest and depend on adults to advocate them -- for a common interest that is shared by all that we can verify by our own experience. It is that common desire we all have for a married mother and father -- two people from which we orginated who are committed to each other and committed to us. It is a human need -- a right that must be supported by laws and society in general.

It is time to chose and commit

As Pope John Paul II said, with "the new state of affairs today . . . It is not permissible for anyone to remain idle" (Christifedelis Laici).

Join "Stand with Children", a project of Catholics for the Common Good Institute(CCGI) with a mission to promote the centrality and integrity of marriage for children and society. Join with other people of good will to learn better, positive ways to explain the importance of traditional marriage to children and young adults and to help counter the influences of the culture. Help friends and neighbors understand what is at stake in ways they have never heard before. Participate as we explore and seek to understand our own relationships, and the true meaning of love.

Become a marriage advocate in your own family and your communities of influence.

Please Promote Marriage with a Tax-Deductible Donation (NOT Publicly Disclosed)

The effort to redefine marriage and family is now effecting nearly every family. Have you ever wondered why we are seeing more and more grown children in our families getting divorces, cohabitating, or having children out of wedlock? Through diversity training programs in schools, marriage is being taught as a life-style choice with no relationship to children or family. In fact, it is increasing considered discriminatory to advocate for married mothers and fathers. At the same time record numbers of children are born out of wedlock, more and more evidence is emerging that fatherless homes are having severe consequences for the development of children and are contributing to increases in delinquency, school drop-outs, teen pregnancy, and poverty. A dramatic marriage gap has formed between high school dropouts and college graduates.

We are witnessing the consequences of the 40 years effort to redefine marriage, family and human sexuality. This is such a threat to the dignity of the human person and to society that the US Conference of Catholic Bishops has made marriage and family a top priority and has developed a five-year program to promote them. Stand with Children is a complementary lay-led effort to support the common interest of every child without exception in having a married mother and father.

Look into your heart. Do you not have a desire for a married mother and father? Even if you were deprived of one or both? That connection with our origin is natural. That wanting to be loved by the man and woman who gave us life is primordial. It is part of our nature that we share in common with all humanity. We can verify this by turning to our own experience. It is because of this, that can know the heart's desire of every child.

The family is the first cell of social life - the first school of love, peace, and justice. Married mothers and fathers are critical to the development of children and for preparing them to be good citizens. All institution of society must be judged by how well they support traditional marriage and the family. We are all called to support policies that promote marriage and family, and oppose those that undermine them. This is an imperative of social justice.

There is a private interest agenda to redefine marriage, family and human sexuality that conflicts with the public interest and the common interest of every child. At a time when schools should be promoting marriage, students are being taught that marriage is a lifestyle choice equivalent to cohabitation and other alternative lifestyles.

For example, a California law that came into effect in early 2008 introduced viewpoint discrimination in public schools against anyone understanding marriage to be the foundation of the family providing children with a mother and a father. Even prior to this, the publicly funded Public Health Institute argued: "Reproductive bias is evident in the following statement: ‘Changes in young women and men during puberty prepare them to reproduce and create new life'." * They state that saying "a loving marriage is the best environment for children"* also exhibits bias. This is just one example of many to show how the truth about marriage and human sexuality is being obscured from our children.

It is time to band together and fight for the integrity of our families and for social justice for children in a positive and charitable way. It is time to make a choice between the private interests of particular adults and the common interest of every child without exception. We hope you and your organization will choose to stand with children and join a growing group of organizations and individuals dedicated to promoting the centrality and integrity of marriage.