Heritage Foundation warns America 'dangerously close' to family breakdown point of no return
A new report from the Heritage Foundation argues the American family is in crisis and that strengthening marriage and family formation should be a core focus of U.S. federal policy.The...
By Fox News · Fox News
A new report from the Heritage Foundation argues the American family is in crisis and that strengthening marriage and family formation should be a core focus of U.S. federal policy. The conservative think tank calls for sweeping policy changes to reverse declining birth and marriage rates, including a proposed $2,500 investment account for every newborn child, as well as other proposals. The report says government policies "should encourage and protect the formation of families, not mere fertility." "The country should not seek a mere boost in the number of children born or in the monetary support that parents receive, the report says. "Yes, the country needs more children. But it matters how and to whom children are born. Society depends on men and women who want to form families, that is, who freely want to marry, and then freely bear and nurture children." 'SEX & THE CITY' REPUBLICANS WANT INTO THE CONSERVATIVE TENT. ALEX CLARK HAS SOMETHING TO SAY ABOUT IT The think tank assesses that decades of cultural change and public policy have contributed to the erosion of family formation, pointing to historically low fertility and marriage rates and a growing share of children raised outside married-parent households. The report ties the decline of the family to broader social and economic problems facing the country. The report argues that traditional family structure remains essential, describing the family as "the foundation of civilization" and defining marriage — one man and one woman — as the ideal environment for raising children. Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts warned that the country is nearing a point of no return when it comes to family breakdown . "The family is the foundation of every healthy society, and, tragically, the American family is on the brink," Roberts said in a statement. "We are dangerously close to being unable to reverse the decline. Our country will not survive if families continue to crumble at this rate." Roberts said the…