Anissa StewartINQ 110 R11/26/2012Article Summary 2Co-Wives, Husband, and The Mormon Polygynous FamilyWilliam Jankowiak- In societies where polygyny is looked down upon, it is still happening- Polygyny results from an attachment based on shared sexual intimacy and a deep sense of mutual belonging- It is a seldom casual undertaking - Although it is not a lifelong commitment- In a pair bond sexual and emotional exclusivity is expected- The anger resulting from an extramarital affair can fall in a polygynous marriageo A spouse feels mistreated resulting in shame and guilto Also a spouse may feel that his or her needs are not being met- These feelings are clearly seen in the Fundamentalist Mormon polygynous communities- The desire for emotional exclusivity is what drives Mormon me and women to these feelings of shame, anger and guiltThe Mormon Polygynous Community- From its beginning 70 years ago this religion has faced government prosecution and social harassment- Since 1882 state and federal government have been trying to disenfranchise Mormons who practice polygyny- Many Mormons then went into hiding in rural Utah, Idaho, Arizona and Mexico- By 1897 over 200 Mormons were sent to prison for practicing polygyny- Despite the multitude of arrests, the church leaders believed that the Mormon religion was abandoning core religious principles when it outlawed polygyny in 1890- Today Mormons practicing polygyny are fundamentalists- From the 1930’s to the 1950”s Colorado City was the site of numerous government raids- The last and longest took place in 1953o 39 men and 86 women were arrestedo Their 263 children were put up for foster care for 2 years- These raids only strengthened the fundamentalists beliefsAnissa StewartINQ 110 R11/26/2012- In result outside pressures helped strengthen the communities values and beliefs- Today Colorado City, Hildale and Centennial Park are enclave cultures- Since the late 1960’s a reluctant tolerance has emerged torward polygynous communities- Although western states are adamant about polygynous marriages are stillillegal adopted to a tolerance toward the 40,000 participants in western North America- At a public hearing held May 24th, 2008 in St, George, Arizona and Utah state officials publically declared that they would no longer be raiding fundamentalist Mormon communities as long as there is no sexual abuse or under legal-age marriages being performed.- Mormon polygyny has become a public secret- At the start of the 21st Century the de facto policy of tolerance gave way to more active state monitoring of public affairs in Colorado and Centennial Park- Today’s concern are no longer the men and women, but the children, incestuous marriage and statutory rape- Anyone over the age of 18 can participate in a polygynous marriage- Colorado City and Centennial Park are secluded from others and are self-governedo Population 6,500 half being under age 12o It is one of 7 polygynous communities in Northern Americao In the 19th century only 10-20% were polygynouso Now 45% are polygynous (158 out of 350 families)o People here practice “Big House” where the entire family stays in one