Says who? According to the CDC (April 2020), 1946 was when it reached an all-time high of 16.4, and then it declined to 8.4 by 1958. That's pretty darn significant, so the author was right to say it started in the 1950s. We've never reached that high again, not even close. So again I ask WHY. WHY in the 1950s. What were women doing wrong? (Because I know on FR, it's always the women who are in the wrong, I'm only humbly asking my masters WHAT exactly we did wrong even in the 1950s.)
Marriage rates in the wake of WWII were at an all-time high. They obviously could not remain as high as the few years after the war, but still remained rather high through the 50s and 60s. Who says that? The data says that. I notice the part where you try to skip over the fact that marriage rates stayed high in the 50s and 60s. Here is another answer from Gemini:
"Marriage rates in the U.S. did not decline much in the 1950s. Instead, the decade was an anomaly characterized by high marriage rates, early median marriage ages, and a massive societal push toward traditional family formation. The specific trends during this time include:
Stable and High Rates: The marriage rate at the start of the decade was very high—about 90.2 marriages per 1,000 people in 1950. While it dipped moderately to 73.5 by 1960, the proportion of the population that was married actually grew.
Record Marital Proportions: In 1950, approximately 62% to 65% of Americans were married, and the 1960 Census recorded a peak of 67.4% of people (14 and older) as married.
Young First Marriages: The median age for first marriage hit historic lows. By 1950, it was roughly 20 for women and 23 for men.
The continuous, significant decline in U.S. marriage rates did not begin until the 1970s.