Debra Bowen 2

Debra Bowen
California Secretary of State
1500 11th Street
Sacramento, California 95814

Dear Ms. Bowen:

    I recently became aware of how difficult it currently is for a man to take on his wife’s last name upon marrying. According to a news story about one couple, a man currently has to pay more than three times what a woman has to pay to change her last name to her husband’s, plus he has to “advertise his intention in a newspaper for four weeks and get a judge’s approval.”
    I understand that some of these procedures go way back, and the advertisement of a name change makes sense in case that individual is doing so simply to avoid debt. But why shouldn’t a woman have to do so as well? I do not understand the extra fees and requirement to see a judge.
    I did not adopt my husband’s last name when I married, though I do use it occasionally. We discussed the various options, such as hyphenating our names, or coming up with a new name, but we probably would not have even entertained these options if we had known about the extra fees and trouble.
    It saddens me that so few men seem to want to take their wives’ names in the first place. In many ways sexism is so rooted in our culture that we do not recognize it when we see it. It’s just easier not to change things. I hope that you will work to make the procedures equal for men , women, and same-sex couples in taking their spouse’s name.

Truly,

Liz Mann

Comments

[alona]

Why would it sadden you that men don't want to take their wives's names? Does it also sadden you that an increasing number of women do not want to take their husband's names?