Is there a sexual revolution in your country?
Yes, and it's been going on for a long time, if by sexual revolution you mean making marriage relations more humane, freeing them from degrading and humiliating elements left over from the past- compulsion, enslavement, material dependence and so on. This was achieved after much discussion and in a struggle against obsolete customs and habits. We regard this as a revolution and welcome it. We are for stable family relations based on love and affection. We are against any sexual liberation which amounts to breaking up of families, irresponsibility and immorality.
That, of course, is a generalisation, because in real life situations arise which cannot be so easily classified. The problems of relations between the sexes and family life are discussed in the newspapers and magazines. Many different views are put forward. Some people want firmer legal guarantees for the sanctity of the family. They believe that relations between husband and wife should be founded on a sense of duty, and especially duty with regard to the children. But most people don't agree with this. A sense of responsibility for the children is all very well; but the main thing nevertheless concerns relations between husband and wife, they feel.
We realize only too well how complicated is the problem of extra-marital relations and children born out of wedlock. Soviet law protects the rights of
the unmarried mother and her child. But extra-marital relations are often condemned by public opinion. The family is still regarded as the only respectable form of relations between two people who love each other.
Many problems remain, and it is impossible to cover them all here. The main principle for resolving them in our country consists in respect for people and their feelings. Prudery, cruelty and material considerations in marriage are rejected.