In 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court mandated nationwide same-sex marriage in Obergefell v. Hodges on the grounds that adult “equality” required extending to same-sex couples the “constellation of benefits” historically associated with marriage. This narrow 5-4 decision effectively overturned laws in many states where voters had already passed legislation opposing same-sex marriage, indicating that there was never a mass consensus that same-sex marriage should be legal.
Ten years later, we have seen the consequences that this decision has led to for children. In the name of a newly invented “right” to marry a person of the same sex, the law sought to enshrine what biology prohibits: making two adults of the same sex parents of a child. This cultural and legal shift was accomplished slowly, through a decade-long overhaul of parenthood centered around adult desire rather than child need. This redefinition of parenthood has led to legislative harms like the Massachusetts Parentage Act, passed in 2024. This act redefines the concept of legal parenthood, devaluing biological parents in the process.
That’s where the Greater Than movement comes in. Launched on January 28th by Them Before Us president and former MFI banquet speaker, Katy Faust, the Greater Than movement is dedicated to restoring marriage to the child-protecting institution it was meant to be.
This is not merely a political movement. This is a coalition of parents, students, researchers, think tanks, influencers, and citizens who are willing to state the self-evident but costly truth: children need, deserve, and have a right to their mother and father. Marriage is, and always has been, the most effective tool to secure that right.
MFI is proud to join this coalition, as we’ve seen the adverse effects of this prioritization of adult desires over children’s needs firsthand. In public schools across the Commonwealth, this has taken the form of direct endorsements of same-sex marriage, from observing the woke National Day of Reading, to reading a book that normalizes same-sex unions to a Kindergartener while refusing a parental opt-out request. Schools have continually attempted to desensitize children to a family structure that is contrary to biological norms.
Not only is teaching children to disregard biology’s role in the family confusing and irresponsible, but we know the adverse effects of one-gender parent households. In 2023, MFI published research that shows what this means for children in Massachusetts who grow up in fatherless homes. This research highlights a drastically increased risk of poverty and increased high school drop-out rate for children in these challenging situations.
Same-sex marriage neglects the needs of children to grow up with both a mother and a father and ignores these alarming statistics. Adults should care deeply about setting their children up for success. Choosing personal desire over a child’s need for both a mother and a father is a selfish act that has life-altering consequences for the child.
MFI has joined this movement because children are more than equal — they deserve priority and protection. For more than a decade, our nation has elevated the sexual desires of adults above the well-being of children. In Massachusetts, this shift began even earlier, following the legalization of same-sex marriage in 2004.
For nearly two decades, the Commonwealth has pursued policies that place children at risk, from ending innocent lives in the womb to exposing children to explicit and inappropriate sexual content in the classroom. MFI has long been engaged in the fight to defend children and parental rights. We will not back down – will you stand with us?
