Dear Marriage Supporter,

Are dads disposable?

As Brad Wilcox, director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia, put it:

Dads are disposable. This is the story now being told in certain precincts of our culture, from the Hollywood Hills—"Women are realizing it more and more, knowing that they don't have to settle with a man just to have that child," in the words of Jennifer Aniston—to the Ivy League—Cornell psychologist Peggy Drexler recently wrote a book, Raising Boys Without Men, that celebrated women raising children without fathers.

There is only one problem with this story: it is a myth that does not fit the facts.

Do not get me wrong. I was raised by a single mom, and I think I turned out OK, as do many children raised in fatherless homes. But as a social scientist, I can also tell you that one consistent conclusion from hundreds of studies on child well-being is this: on average, children are much more likely to thrive when they have the good fortune to be raised in a home with their own married father.

With marriage on the ballot in four states this November, what better way to stand up for dads this Fathers' Day weekend than with a gift to defend marriage? Volunteers in Washington and Maryland have just submitted record numbers of signatures to protect marriage and send the message that kids need their mom AND their dad! Campaigns in Minnesota and Maine are making the same argument to voters in advance of the November elections.

Make sure that the state campaigns have the funds needed to take their message straight to the voters through advertising, phone calls, emails, and campaign rallies.

Click here to make a secure online gift directly to Stand for Marriage America.
When you make a gift today, each state campaign will receive 25% of your total donation. And NOM will match every gift made before midnight on Monday, up to $20,000.

I hope you'll join me in making a generous gift to these state campaigns today. With a gift of $40, you can donate $10 to each campaign—and its impact will be doubled as NOM matches your gift dollar for dollar. Give a gift in honor of your own Dad this weekend!

Happy Fathers' Day!