Abstract
What does a family look like? In recent years, societal understandings have generally grown more inclusive of different kinds of familial structures, including queer families, blended families, interracial families, working mothers, and caregiving fathers. But traditional notions of family roles and expectations still loom large in public consciousness. Critical drivers of this discrepancy are the legal systems that continuously uphold the power of the white, middle-class, patriarchal nuclear family image.
Through a performance theory lens, this Comment argues that the child welfare and family policing system punishes nontraditional, minority, and disenfranchised families to uphold socially dominant performances of the family. Part I provides a brief overview of performance theory. Part II argues that the child welfare system specifically targets nontraditional family structures in favor of the traditional standards—without providing meaningful support to struggling families. Part III argues that the welfare system demands children align with the traditional image of childhood to ensure the continued dominance of that performance—to the detriment of children. Part IV advocates for the abolition of the current system in favor of community-oriented approaches to safe, healthy, supported families and kids.
