The nuclear family is a a single-family home, rather than multigenerational homes which was the norm across the world. This model rose in popularity in the United States around the time of the Cold War. The push for this structure created a specific picture of what families should be like and look like.
Characteristics:
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- Father, mother, two children one boy one girl, a dog
- Detached house, white picket fence
- Father is the breadwinner, mother is the homemaker
- Single income
- Middle class, white family
This social cohesion is essential because when everyone looks and acts the same, people act under the assumption that others are just like them, creating unspoken trust. This look is purposefully exclusionary because it is not attainable by everyone and a lack of trust from others creates division and opportunity for alienation.
This video breaks down how the nuclear family is changing since its inception, highlighting gendered norms and their burdens, class privileges, and chosen families. This last one in particular is significant to queer people because chosen families have often arisen from being outcast from the typical family structure due to heteronormativity. While there has been a shift in the nuclear family characteristics, family practices and ideals are still enforced by heteronormativity.
Queer people do not fit this heteronormative model of a family typically. There has been a recent shift in the view of queer families with the legalization of same sex marriage if the married couple has children and adopts this nuclear family model. An example of this would be the TV show Modern Family.
This show follows 3 different families who are related. One family is two married gay men and their adoptive daughter. This representation of queerness and family is important because it begins to dismantle common misconceptions about LGBTQ+ individuals. There are unique issues that present itself through queer parenthood because of traditional norms and identities. However this family structure is only different because it is not the heterosexual nuclear family. In regards to ideals and family practices, the queer family does not divert from the heteronormativity that encircles societal expectations of family life (Folgerø, 2008). Therefore showing how queer families, like in Modern Family, can still uphold the nuclear family model and be accepted because their family practices do not diverge from the existing structure.
Still, a lot of queer people, relationship or not, do not fit within the nuclear family. As a child and young adult, not upholding heteronormativity can result in being outcast by the family. This creates a multitude of issues for individuals that increase their likelihood of involvement with law enforcement and possibly incarceration (see Criminalization).