Introduction.

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Today, fewer and fewer families live in what many have dubbed "traditional family relationships" with a working husband, a non-working wife and their children. Unfortunately, our legal and social system, with its incentives and protections for the traditional family, fails to provide for a majority of U.S. employees. As a response to the inadequacy of legal and social frameworks in defining relationships, many people, including lesbians and gay men, began searching for a new definition of family--one that fits their reality. Hence, the concept of "domestic partnership" was born.

Benefits for domestic partnerships are a variation on the theme of recognizing and respecting the reality of today's relationships for the following reasons:

First, benefits for the unmarried partners of employees are important for the simple reason that they are desperately needed. If a partner is seriously ill, an employee will need time to take care of her or him. In addition, if the partner falls outside coverage by the private health care industry, the employee will need to pay for her or his medical expenses. Furthermore, if the partner has a child, the employee will need to help care for the child. These are just a few of the instances in which partner benefits, though gravely needed, are not granted to unmarried employees.

Second, domestic partnership benefits are important because the majority of people in the United States still have misconceptions about unmarried couples in general, and about lesbians and gay men in particular. Lesbians and gay men are often depicted in the media and perceived by many as anti-family and unable to commit to long-term relationships. However, each time they lobby for domestic partnership rights, either within private corporations or in the public sector, those perceptions are challenged. This action helps to educate the citizenry about the lives and families of gay men and lesbians.

Third, although domestic partnership recognition may confer few legal rights, couples could conceivably use their partnership as evidence of a familial relationship, which in turn could be used to support questions which arise in family matters, ex., estate issues.

  1. Historical Background (1)

    When seeking such benefits, it helps to have a general understanding about why employers offer family benefits:

    Prior to World War II, the vast majority of employers did not extend benefits coverage to an employee's family members. As the influence of unions...

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