Should women keep their maiden name?

No because the divorce rate is about 50-60 percent I think they should decide whether they should keep their maiden name or not. The girl should make the choice; it should not be made for them.
Brandon de Leon
Teacher: Robert Leal, Veteran's Memorial Academy

No, I think women shouldn't change their maiden name. When you change your last name it is like you belong to your Husband, well you do belong to your husband, but you are not property.
Daniela Flores
Teacher: Robert Leal, Veteran's Memorial Academy

Yes, I do think that the women should stay with their last name. It is not fair that the men do not have to change their last name.
Alejandra De los Santos
Teacher: Robert Leal, Veteran's Memorial Academy

The decision whether or not a lady should keep her maiden name is up to her and only her. If a woman wanted to show her dedication to marriage, then taking her husband's last name is appropriate. But if she feels uncomfortable with changing her last name, not changing it wouldn't seem like that big of a problem.
Trevor Jackson
Teacher: David Means, San Benito High School

I believe women should have the choice whether they keep their maiden name or not because it's their family's name. What if they don't have any brothers to continue with their family's name? They should have the opportunity to extend their family name with their kids as well. It's a free country so we should have the right.
Mayra Padilla
Teacher: David Means, San Benito High School

I think that women should not keep their maiden name because if you are choosing to be married you have to remember you are devoting your love and affection to him. As it also shows that you have made a commitment by changing it.
Sandra Pursifull
Teacher: David Means, San Benito High School

I don't think women should keep their maiden name because when she changes her last name it shows the unity of the newly married couple. The husband's last name after the wife's first name shows that she is now part of another family, her own. If she wants to keep her maiden name, she shouldn't join somebody and begin a family. If and when a baby is born into the couple's life, the baby should also get the husband's name because it shows the family growing.
Yessenia Garcia
Teacher: Dagoberto Pena, San Benito High School

I think women should not keep their maiden name because when they get married they should take their fiancées last name to show that they are married. It is kinda like a symbol of marriage besides the rings. It also comes to show that the woman is no longer part of one family but two. It's another step in a woman's life.
Clarissa Lynn Padilla
Teacher: Dagoberto Pena, San Benito High School

I think that women should keep their maiden name in some form because they are humans too. A woman is not that different from a man. They can do the same things that men can do. I think that a woman's maiden name should be kept between her first name and her husband's last name, to show that their family is important like the men's are. People should give credit to women because they work hard too. Women don't want to keep their husband's last name if they get divorced. They want to get rid of the guy and live on.
Ricardo Torres
Teacher: Dagoberto Pena,
San Benito High School

Yes, I think women should keep their maiden names for two reasons. One reason is because if you have offspring, you might want to let your young have your maiden name. The second reason is if you tie the knot with some one, and you take the name you'll have to change your social card, driver license, and so forth. It's a lot of work. Then what if you get a divorce? You'll have to change your stuff, back to your maiden name. We can't see what's yet to come; you'll never know what's going to happen.
D'Andrea M. Miller
Teacher: Vernon Nelson, Vernon Middle School

I think women should keep their maiden names because some of the men they may marry might have some weird or odd last names. I don't think it's fair that women should have to take the man's last name if they don't like it. If a woman doesn't like the man's last name, that shouldn't give them a reason not to marry them. A good idea would be to give the woman a chance to choose whether to keep her last name, or use the man's. It will cause fewer complications.
Jordin Cano
Teacher: Vernon Nelson, Vernon Middle School

I have to say no because sometimes people would think that you are not married to your husband. If one keeps her maiden name, it might not sound right with her first name. Since she does change her name, sometimes it sounds better. Another problem would be that if her name isn't the same as her child's name then there may be problems picking him/her up from school; they won't let you take him/her home.
Annastacia Ramos
Teacher: Alicia Ramon, Vernon Middle School

I don't think women should keep their last name. It's a tradition that the wife takes the husband's last name. We shouldn't ruin that tradition. We only have a handful of traditions as it is. It also shows a sign of respect. It shows you are going to start another happy family. So I don't think they should keep their maiden name.
Kimo Salinas
Teacher: Alicia Ramon,
Vernon Middle School

I think women should keep their maiden. When women get married they have to give up their maiden and use their husband's last name. When they give up their last name it's like throwing away your family's heritage. I bet that when women
get married they have a hard time giving up there their maiden too.
Mark Rosales
Teacher: Alicia Ramon,
Vernon Middle School

I think women should keep their last name because it might be something they cherish and they want to keep it to give to
their children. They also might want to keep it if maybe their mom or dad died they would want to keep it to have something
to remember them by. Maybe if they have a unique last name they would want to keep it. They might want to keep it because for religious purposes maybe they got baptized with that last name.
Madison Diane Saenz
Teacher: Stacey Hill,
Gutierrez Middle School

I think women should drop here maiden name and take their husbands last name. This has been done for a long time so why change it. Also I think it is cool how their children will have the same last name as their grandparents. It is also easier to do it this way because the couple won't have to choose between the wives last name and the husbands.
Katie Carter
Teacher: Stacey Hill. Gutierrez Middle School

I don't think women should keep their maiden name because it is traditional for women to change their name when they get married. I would change my last name when I get married because it symbolizes that you are married. Most of my family has changed their last name when they got married. That's what I'm planning on doing.
Hannah Jo Greer
Teacher: Stacey Hill, Gutierrez Middle School

In the United States, it's a custom for women to change their last names whereas in other countries, women can keep their maiden names without any questions being asked. The wealthy individuals get a choice whether the woman or the man changes their last names depending on who is wealthier. In my opinion, I think women and men alike should make the decision to change their names. Men shouldn't be the only ones to keep their maiden names. Women should also have the right to keep their maiden names. I think women and men alike should keep their own names just in case the marriage doesn't work out they will not pay more money to change the last names. This is why I think women should have rights to keep their maiden names.
Kimberly Azua
Teacher: Cristella Chavez, Vernon Middle School

I think that women should not keep their maiden name because of family unity. If the female does not change her name, what name are the kids going to go by? There would be a conflict when the kids are born, and it would cause conflict when they're grown up and having kids of their own. Having the same last name unites a family. It is tradition for the family to have the man's last name, and it is understood by almost everyone in America.
Elijah DeLeon
Teacher: Cristella Chavez, Vernon Middle School

I think women should keep their maiden name. The reason I think women should keep their maiden name is because what if there is an old friend looking for them? They could look for them using their last name from high school. When women get married, some change their last names and some don't. It's easier because if you have a high school reunion, they can look for you by your maiden name, because they aren't going to know your married last name.
Natalie Alaniz
Teacher: Cristella Chavez,
Vernon Middle School

Getting married is a commitment that two people make. Their desire to be together forever and their willingness to be loyal to each other depends on how deep their interpersonal emotion stir. Women who abandoned their own name for their husbands' take the first step into marriage: Sacrificing. Moreover, the act of changing their name shows they believe in the maledominance in society. They sacrifice the upper hand in their family household and in their marriage in general.
Fred Gonzalez
Teacher: Jean Bovee, Weslaco
High School

A woman who keeps her maiden name is the same as a man keeping his. It should not be a major concern if a woman wants to keep her maiden name, because there is nothing wrong with it. Why are women looked at differently if they do not adopt their husband's name? Women can be just as successful in life as a man, and perhaps their maiden name can be better for business purposes. Women need to realize that not taking somebody else's name, when they marry, should not be anybody else's business, and it is the women's way to be more independent and determined.
Brianna Villasenor
Teacher: Jean Bovee, Weslaco High School

Although women take their husband's name due to tradition, women should keep their maiden name. Women have worked so hard to become equal to men in this country, and by changing their name, they are giving the power back to the men.
Dez Cavazos
Teacher: Jean Bovee, Weslaco High School

I don't think she should keep her maiden name because she loves him. Maybe his last name is better than hers.
Edgar Barboza
Teacher: Maria V. de los Santos,
W.B. Green Jr. High

I think it depends on the woman's feelings. If the woman really likes her last name, I say she should keep it. She has had it all of her life and why should she have to change her name just because she decided to get married? If she happy with herself and her name, I think she should keep it.
Melony Sanchez
Teacher: Maria V. de los Santos
W.B. Green Jr. High

I want to know why it has to be the woman who changes her name. Why can't the man change his name? I guess it doesn't really matter who changes their name as long as they remember that they are equal partners, love each other, and respect each other.
Priscilla Cerda
Teacher: Maria V. de los Santos, W.B. Green Jr. High

I think being married is difficult enough without having to decide whether to change your maiden name or not. I think that the people who get married today should only be thinking about their marriage and not about their names. Staying married is difficult enough, without adding any more problems.
Ashley Sandoval

Teacher: Maria V. de los Santos, W.B. Green Jr. High Well, I think women should keep their original last name because it can be like losing their identity. It's also that if you have a reputation by that last name and they change it people won't know who she is anymore.
Isaac Gonzalez

Teacher: Laura Hinojosa, W. B. Green, Jr. High I don't think they should change their maiden name because people know them by their last name. Then when they get married everybody gets so confused and doesn't know who she is anymore.
Michelle Hinojosa

Teacher: Laura Hinojosa, W. B. Green, Jr. High I think that women should have a choice that they want to keep their maiden names are not. I think of my name is something that everyone knows and is used to. I also think of it as a memory that has been with me for years, and I would not like to change it. I think women should have a choice if they want to change their name or not.
Anthony Goulet Teacher: Laura Hinojosa,
W. B. Green, Jr. High

Yes, women should keep their maiden name because what if they were an important person, like a doctor or actress or someone everybody knows. Like if the woman is a doctor everybody knows that she is a great doctor working for 16 years and if you change your maiden name then no one is going to know the doctor. That's the same thing for an actress and someone else who was important.
Jacqueline Guardado
Teacher: Laura Hinojosa, W. B. Green, Jr. High

No, I think they should change their maiden name because it is something that's been going on forever They don't say Miss Martinez and Mr. something, they say Mr.and Mrs. Martinez. They should just keep it that way.
Perla Martinez
Teacher: Laura Hinojosa, W. B. Green, Jr. High

I think women should keep their maiden name because these days most people have the same first and last name. A woman's maiden name distinguishes who she is. There has been lots of identity theft, so if they keep their maiden name they wouldn't get mixed up in a mess like that. Once women get married and change their name it's like they are a different person.
Aaron M. Balli
Teacher: Terrie Gracia, W. B. Green Jr. High

I think women should have a choice to either keep their maiden name or not. The woman can be independent and want to keep their maiden name. She can have or want the husband's name because she doesn't like her own. Why don't the males get the last name of the wife?
Eli Alegria
Teacher: Terrie Gracia, W. B. Green Jr. High

Women should keep their maiden name. It's not fair that women have to give up their name. If you want to spend the rest of your life with the guy then he should learn to honor your decisions. The guys should be the ones giving up their names. If you get divorced then you'll have to pay a lot of money to get maiden name back. So I don't think it's fair for the women to pay to get their maiden name back. So the boys should be the ones to change their last name.
Courtney Smith
Teacher: Terrie Gracia
W. B. Green Jr. High

I think women should keep their maiden name. Their maiden name is the name that their parents gave them. If the girl keeps her maiden name, then they don't have to go through all that trouble changing everything with the maiden name on it.
Rudy Soto,
Teacher: Anna Zambrano
W. B. Green Jr. High

I think that women should keep their maiden name. They got their maiden name from their parents. They have had that name from birth. It is giving respect to your wife's family.
Mario De Leon
Teacher: Anna Zambrano, W. B. Green Jr. High

No, I don't think that girls should change their maiden name unless they really hate their maiden name. Women should not go through the trouble of changing the name on their Social Security cards, bank cards, and other important things. I would like to stay with my last name that my parents gave me; I would love to stay with it, and love my kids to have my last name.
Brittany Garza
Teacher: Anna Zambrano, W. B. Green Jr. High