And I could not be more overjoyed that my very on General Assembly Delegate Karen Keys-Gamarra was the one who brought the bill into life here. Virginia is also the first southern state to outlaw child marriage.

Think about this: a 16-year-old girl probably hasn’t even graduated high-school and in 38 states, enough to pass an Amendment to the Constitution, she can still be sold into marriage by her parents. But not in Virginia! No, in Virginia she has a right to reach adulthood before making such an important life-long decision!

And if you really love her at 16, won’t you still be loving her at 18? If not, it’s just as well we made it illegal and if so, then, assuming she’s an interested adult, you will.

This is a great win for decency and I look forward to many more states passing similar legislation. Only legal adults should be marrying, not kids! Let kids remain children!