Marrying First Cousin

[barry1010]

The death of Jerry Lee Lewis has prompted outrage and disgust on some news reports and social media outlets that he married his cousin when she was 13.
I'm sure you know he didn't break any laws when he did so and some US states still don't have a minimum age for marriage.

I have been bewildered by the posts from UK citizens who are disgusted that he married his second cousin - here in the UK first cousins can legally marry.
A petition calling for this to be made illegal in 2014 got only 8 signatures https://petition.parliament.uk/archived/petitions/54278

Another got 105 supporters https://www.change.org/p/uk-parliament-ban-first-cousin-marriages-in-the-uk

Last year's attempt got 221 signatures https://www.parallelparliament.co.uk/petitions/592255/ban-marriages-of-1st-cousins-and-give-registry-offices-powers-to-order-dna-tests

I am interested to hear your views - is it okay for first cousins to marry? I get the impression that 'Outraged of Oldham' and 'Disgusted of Derby' love venting their spleen on social media (so much less effort that putting pen to paper and writing to the newspapers) but are too bone idle to actually do anything to change things.

I wanted to marry my first cousin. I was 6 and she was training to be a nurse. When I was 7 I wanted to marry the girl next door.

[sadielady]

The first cousin part doesn't bother me to much but the age of the child does.......

[jennyjoan]

One of my best friends married her first cousin in Australia and went on to have 5 very clever children. So no big deal.

[goodgoalie]

Still common in some cultures and communities.
For example, in one district of rural Pakistan, 66% of rural marriages were to a first or second cousin. In some areas the higher proportion of first-cousin marriages in Pakistan has been noted to be the cause of an increased rate of blood disorders in the population.
[Source:Wiki]

[royfromaus]

rockyracoon
If genetically, there's no problem with first cousins having children, then I don't see the problem with them getting married.
_________________
There's increased risked without a doubt.
They shouldn't have a sexual relationship imo.

[maggiebee]

Myra was his second cousin when they "wed" She was his third wife and apparently he was still married to his second wife when the "wedding" took place. Remember too that Elvis dated the 15 year old Pricilla before they eventually married. Showbiz seems to operate under different rules, especially in the US.

[lankeela]

jno you mean Norfolk, where Bob's not necessarily just your uncle!

[naomi24]

This sort of thing happens every day in some Asian communities - and with girls even younger. I must have missed the outrage about that.

[pastafreak]

I don't think "showbiz" had anything to do with it. It was just what was acceptable or common in some sections of American society at the time.

[Ken4155]

Doesn't seem to bother any of the families in House Of Dragons :-))

[naomi24]

^Exactly.

[naomi24]

^That to pasta.

[LadyCG]

I remember when working in Paediatrics we had a number of children of consanguineous cousins with birth defects of varying degrees of severity. They were always, without fail, ethnic minorities.

[barry1010]

It's not just US showbiz types that get away with underage relationships. Mandy Smith was 13 when 47 year old Bill Wyman started a relationship with her.

[tiggerblue10]

Victoria and Albert were first cousins.

[jourdain2]

I'll add my mite. The occasional marriage of first cousins doesn't usually seem to bring any dire problems. The problem is when it is a tradition and it keeps on happening. As someone posted earlier, it is common practice amongst some ethnic groups -W. Yorks.

Pakistanis are the ones I know about -and then it does bring problems because it is repeated and repeated. For many years, with a relatively limited choice of partners, cousins were imported for marriage (probably still are). Disabilities have risen noticeably. I was not a special-school teacher, but I was occasionally asked to 'fill in' at one in Bradford. The staff were quite resigned to the fact that they were now dealing with a school full of multiply-disabled Pakistani children and said, quite matter-of-factly, that they were the products of repeated inbreeding. They were a bit fed up that these children took resources away from the rarer 'problem' children in the indigenous population.

[jourdain2]

hifo That is horrible and uncalled for in the extreme. Firstly, I did not say it was the children's fault. I was reporting what I saw, knew for a fact and also what I was told by the staff concerned. It is not in the least racist except in your mind. I taught extremely successfully in and around Bradford for over 30 years and you don't do that if the kids think you are racist! If truth cannot be spoken we are in a bad way.
Going back a few years to my grandson. He had viciously assaulted his much smaller sister and inlicted physical damage on her. i 'pinned him down in his bedroom' by dint of sending him there very firmly (yes I frightened him with my voice, and he needed it) and then closing the door on him and making him stay there until parental discipline could be imposed. Nothing physical happened.
He remains a troublesome child, but vastly improved and we are on good terms. How dare you? I hope someone reports you.

[fripfrip]

How come people of the same sex can be in love and that's alright but first cousins of the opposite sex cannot,and what if the cousins were the same sex would that be ok?

[Meaghan27]

I don't think the problem is falling in love with your cousin I think its concerns about having a child with your cousin. Its not illegal though, I don't think so.