3 of 42

Write now Article Tools

Page 2 of 4

weren't smacked we might have more deeper and meaningful friendships? Better relationships? Lasting marriages? Feel less depressed? Perform better at work? Have a better outlook and attitude towards life?

Secondly, children who have been hit by misguided well-intentioned parents are later able to reach a well-adjusted adulthood because of the love, nurturance and appropriate limit-setting not because of the physical violence they received.

Jordan Riak cites an excellent example that articulates the fallacy of this belief rather aptly (incidentally, each and every one of these examples applies to my own childhood, too):

"Let's test the I-turned-out-okay argument by examining a few real-life examples from my own childhood. See if they apply to you.

1. There were ashtrays in every room of our house. My parents smoked, as did most adult visitors to our home. The aroma of cigarette, cigar and pipe smoke was always present. Nobody minded. In fact, not one day passed in my early life when I was not exposed to tobacco smoke. I was even exposed in the womb because my mother smoked when she was pregnant with me. And I turned out okay.

2. The first family car I remember was a 1937 Chevrolet sedan. It had no seat belts. When we traveled, I was merely plunked down on the back seat with the expectation that gravity would keep me there. It did. And I turned out okay.

3. All the places in which I lived as a child were painted with lead-based paint. And I turned out okay.

4. I used a bicycle throughout my childhood and teen years, but never wore any kind of protective headgear. And I turned out okay.

Was my family wise or just lucky? Today, we don't do those things anymore. We don't take such risks, and we don't expose our children to such risks not if we know the facts."

Quite possibly, one of the uncomfortable notions about being anti-smacking is that many of us were smacked at some stage when we were children. The idea that our parents did something wrong towards us can be an uncomfortable truth to face. However, it is important to be aware that our parents did what they felt was right at the time because they lacked the knowledge and awareness of the possible ill-effects of their actions.

All the examples listed above are other ways our parents did "wrong" against us but they were all accepted practices in their day. Our parents can claim the right to ignorance because a lot of the evidence we now have were not available to them. However, in this age of information,

• << previous page
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• next page >>

Add your voice

Know something about To smack or not to smack a child?
We want to hear your view. Write now!