Have you seen this you-tube video that was released yesterday?
WARNING, please be careful, the video is very painful to watch, should you chose to do so. It may also triggers really nasty memories if you have lived similar things. <I>Please be careful</I>.
In this video, a young adult is publishing a video she recorded 7 years ago when she was 15 years old, of a beating she received with a belt from her father.
What's interesting about this terrible story is that:
<LIST>
I also think that seeing this video, as difficult as it may be, may help to take the measure of what it is to hit a child - for whatever the reason, with or without belt - when we look at it from an outside point of view. That outside view is a true neutral view: without our emotions of the moment, we can see the pain, the fear, the screams. Is this what we want for our children? Even at a lower scale, is this even acceptable, in any way, shape or form?
The fact that the father is a judge, knows the law of his country and state perfectly well, and still acts this way is also a powerful reminder that tolerance of spanking is an open door to abuse, IMO.
Yes, there is a big difference between a very small, symbolic, and unique slap on the butts of a 4 years old, and 17 leather belt strikes on a 16 years old with curses and name calling... of course. And yet, where do we draw the line? If even a judge can lose sight of what is or is not abuse, can this limit truly be defined?
And can the justice system be trusted when we are talking about a judge who has to apply the law to differentiate between "spanking" and "abuse" ? Can we trust the humans behind the law? This is why, IMO, it becomes much easier and clear when any form of spanking is banned, period.
So what do you parents think? Did seeing this video change something in you? What reflections did it triggered in you? Please share, if you'd like.
Nicolas, Family Life Educator
WARNING, please be careful, the video is very painful to watch, should you chose to do so. It may also triggers really nasty memories if you have lived similar things. <I>Please be careful</I>.
In this video, a young adult is publishing a video she recorded 7 years ago when she was 15 years old, of a beating she received with a belt from her father.
What's interesting about this terrible story is that:
<LIST>
<LI>- The father calls this "spanking", and in his mind, he is perfectly convinced this is not abuse</LI>
<LI> - When interviewed after the video release, he said that "it's not as bad as it looks on tape"</LI>
<LI> - The abuser is a Judge, Judge William, an Aransas Country judge from Texas. IN his professional life, William routinely has to take legal decisions on cases of abuses on minors (!) </LI>
I also think that seeing this video, as difficult as it may be, may help to take the measure of what it is to hit a child - for whatever the reason, with or without belt - when we look at it from an outside point of view. That outside view is a true neutral view: without our emotions of the moment, we can see the pain, the fear, the screams. Is this what we want for our children? Even at a lower scale, is this even acceptable, in any way, shape or form?
The fact that the father is a judge, knows the law of his country and state perfectly well, and still acts this way is also a powerful reminder that tolerance of spanking is an open door to abuse, IMO.
Yes, there is a big difference between a very small, symbolic, and unique slap on the butts of a 4 years old, and 17 leather belt strikes on a 16 years old with curses and name calling... of course. And yet, where do we draw the line? If even a judge can lose sight of what is or is not abuse, can this limit truly be defined?
And can the justice system be trusted when we are talking about a judge who has to apply the law to differentiate between "spanking" and "abuse" ? Can we trust the humans behind the law? This is why, IMO, it becomes much easier and clear when any form of spanking is banned, period.
So what do you parents think? Did seeing this video change something in you? What reflections did it triggered in you? Please share, if you'd like.
Nicolas, Family Life Educator