Do you agree with the B.C. polygamy ruling?

Winston Blackmore, a religious leader in the polygamist community of Bountiful B.C., shares a laugh with six of his daughters in 2008. (Jonathan Hayward/Canadian Press) The B.C. Supreme Court has upheld the Criminal Code section prohibiting polygamy, preserving Canada's century-old ban on polygamous marriage.

Justice Robert Bauman ruled the law banning polygamy is constitutional. While it does infringe on religious freedom, the law is justifiable given the general harm polygamy can cause to children and to society at large, Bauman said.

Wednesday's landmark ruling focused on a breakaway sect of the Mormon Church in rural Bountiful, B.C. But its implications are likely to affect polygamists in Canada's Muslim and North African communities, and those who have multiple marriage partners outside a religious context.

Opponents of the ruling say multi-person relationships among consenting adults have been unfairly targeted, and argue the Bountiful case should have focused on a litany of child abuse allegations.

Its supporters feared a reversal of the ban would have made Canada a haven for polygamists.
 
Do you agree with Judge Bauman's ruling? Why or why not? What do you consider to the benefits or drawbacks of a polygamous society?



(This survey is not scientific. Results are based on readers' responses.)

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• Your answers: Polygamy myth or fact