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"The Defense of Marriage Act is back in the Supreme Court spotlight this week; sometime before the summer recess begins, the justices are expected to rule on the constitutionality of the 1996 law, known as DOMA, that defines marriage as a legal union between a man and a women. Rather than change their Facebook profile pictures to a stock photo of a nuclear family, several representatives stood before the House on Tuesday to voice their support for the DOMA definition of marriage. One particular congressman, Phil Gingrey (R-Ga.), used it as an opportunity to express his views on the role traditional marriage plays in shaping the minds of the American youth. Said Rep. Gingrey: &amp;quot;You know, maybe part of the problem is we need to go back into the schools at a very early age, maybe at the grade-school level, and have a class for the young girls and have a class for the young boys and say, you know, this is what&amp;#x27;s important. This is what a father does that is maybe a little different, maybe a little bit better than the talents that a mom has in a certain area. And the same thing for the young girls, that, you know, this is what a mom does, and this is what is important from the standpoint of that union which we call marriage.&amp;quot; At first, I thought, When did we invent a time machine and bring a mid-19th-century curmudgeon to the House floor?&amp;quot; But then I realized: This is a great idea! On that day in school when the girls see the movie about &amp;quot;their changing bodies&amp;quot; and boys go play Xbox or learn how to turn their head and cough or whatever it is that the boys do, they can also get briefed on their respective gender roles for the future. Two birds, meet one stone. (I am kidding, of course.) I will say this: Gingrey&amp;#x27;s defense of the Defense of Marriage Act doesn&amp;#x27;t denounce working moms&amp;amp;#8212;instead, he&amp;#x27;s saying that a working mom needs a husband, her children need a father, and the only way to successfully raise a well-rounded child is under the traditional nuclear family structure. What Gingrey is implying without explicitly stating it is that same-sex couples cannot provide the same loving, nurturing environment necessary for a child&amp;#x27;s development and well-being that a heterosexual couple can. However, results from several studies indicate that children raised by same-sex couples are actually happier and have healthier relationships with their families. Moreover, according to a recent ABC News/Washington Post poll, 55 percent of Americans support legalizing same-sex marriage, and in our July issue, we noted that 70 percent of Glamour readers say make same-sex marriage legal everywhere. Maybe it&amp;#x27;s time for some new traditions? What are your thoughts on Gingrey&amp;#x27;s comments/DOMA? "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.glamour.com/inspired/blogs/the-conversation/2013/06/congressman-phil-gingrey-sugge>