Polyamory gets more legal protection
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When it comes to love, more people are considering options other than monogamy.
Why it matters: Media coverage, a buzzy new memoir and shows like "Couple to Throuple" are bringing polyamory into mainstream conversation.
- Limited laws are only beginning to protect people from the stigma that can come with being in relationships with more than one person, Axios' Carly Mallenbaum and Mimi Montgomery write.
State of play: There's emerging legal progress for nontraditional families in the U.S.
- This month, Berkeley and Oakland are introducing family and relationship structure nondiscrimination bills, representatives of the Polyamory Legal Advocacy Coalition tell Axios.
By the numbers: Data is limited on polyamory's prevalence, and surveys ask about relationship preferences differently. But there is an apparent uptick in openness to polyamory, a typically nonhierarchical and consensual relationship structure that includes multiple partners.
- About one-third of polled American singles say they've had a consensually non-monogamous relationship, according to Match's 2024 Singles in America study.
- A slightly higher proportion described their ideal relationship as something other than complete monogamy in a 2023 YouGov survey.
What they're saying: "As a millennial living in Oakland … I know plenty of people who are polyamorous but wouldn't say that out loud," says Oakland councilmember Janani Ramachandran, who says she's the first LGBTQ woman of color to serve on the council.
- Ramachandran plans to introduce the nondiscrimination ordinance protecting diverse family and relationship structures to the rules committee Thursday, she tells Axios.
- She hopes it could lead to a "waterfall effect" and encourage school districts and even the state legislation to protect all kinds of families.