I grew up in Denver and Las
Vegas and because my parents worked I was often home by myself. When I was
younger, around 3 or 4 years old, my parents would leave me food and strict
instructions to not answer the door or phone or touch the stove. By
kindergarten I would walk home, retrieve the key from under the mat, and let
myself in. As I got older, towards 9a nd 10 years old, I would take the bus by myself
places. I would walk to our public library by myself. I don’t believe my
parents were willfully neglectful. Rather, someone had to work! And daycare was
expensive and they couldn’t see any other options.
As a grown up, and as a
parent, would I make those same decisions now with my kids? Heck no! But I also
live a very different life than the one my parents did. My struggles are not
their struggles. I have a large community of support through friends. We take
care of each other and often watch each other’s kids. And we can afford
daycare, thought it hurts! I think we make the best decisions we can with what
we know and what we have.
The part in the article that
really got me was:
"A
10-year-old may be perfectly fine walking alone in one neighborhood, he says,
but might not be safe in another with drug dealers on the corner. We
hate to say that the people that live in those two communities ought to be
treated differently because we would probably get into uncomfortable issues of
socioeconomic status and ethnicity," he says. "But that's the reality
in our country."
Is it ethical to tell one
group of people they are allowed to let their kids play outside without adult
supervision while telling a different group they would be penalized and
prosecuted for the same actions? Where
our ethics and morals start cross, policies are at conflict and I am not so
sure it would be ok to have different rules for different neighborhoods. In
particular when due to life circumstances and poverty, the group that would be
punished most is the very group that needs the flexibility the most.
1 comment:
Like the article says, its a socieconomic and ethnicity issue. I would also add maybe even a cultural issue. Our societal norm is based off of white, middle class culture and we tend to exclude those who do not fit within that mold or address their issues as culturally neutral. Especially in regards to parenting, it is about their access and ability to afford daycare or a babysitter. This issue is very complex, and I don't know the answer, but I think in order to address this issue we must look at it from all cultural angles.
Post a Comment