Tag Archives: child abuse

The “Tiger Mother”‘s Daughter Accepted Into Harvard: Was Mom’s Strict Parenting Worth It?

Jessica WakemanApril 5, 2011 //

Earlier this winter, Yale Law Professor Amy Chua published Battle Hymn Of The Tiger Mother, a memoir about her strict parenting style rooted in her Chinese upbringing. A “Chinese mother” is a broad term to describe a sub-set of strict parents who expect excellence from their children and force them to both study and rehearse instruments for hours a day. Chua’s two kids were not allowed play dates or sleepovers; she harshly admonished them and punished them throughout their childhood for not devoting themselves to schoolwork and musical study. The book — and her Wall Street Journal op-ed excerpted from it — unsurprisingly caused a huge kerfluffle among parents. Many thought she was was downright abusive.

But consider this: earlier in the week, Amy Chua’s elder daughter, Sophia Chua-Rubenfeld, learned that she was accepted to Harvard University‘s class of 2015, and plans to attend. It begs the question, was growing up with a “tiger mother” worth it? Keep reading »

Today’s Lady News: Lesbians Don’t Abuse Their Kids, Study Says

Jessica WakemanNovember 11, 2010 //
  • The child abuse rate in lesbian households is zero percent. Yup, zero percent for both physical and sexual abuse. That’s according to the U.S. National Longitudinal Lesbian Family Study from the UCLA School of Law. [Huffington Post]
  • Meet King Peggy — also known as Nana Amuah-Afenyi VI — an American woman who reigns as king in a Ghanian village. King Peggy was living in Maryland two years ago when she got a call she had been chosen to lead a community of 7,000. This story is completely awesome and I wholeheartedly suggest you read it. [NPR]
  • Oof. Susana Martinez, New Mexico’s governor-elect, had to be reminded by a reporter from Latina magazine about what the DREAM Act is. (For the record, it would allow children of illegal immigrants to stay in the U.S. if they go to college or serve in the military.) [Latina]

Keep reading »

Britney Spears’ Ex-Bodyguard Files A Lawsuit Over Alleged Sexual Harassment, Child Abuse

Jessica WakemanSeptember 9, 2010 //

If it’s a day ending in “y,” that means there is more trouble for Brit-Brit. Ex-bodyguard Fernando Flores filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against the pop tart yesterday. Even though we knew some of the accusations previously — she walked around the house naked; she asked for his belt to spank her kids — now he is spilling all the beans. And they’re some dirty, dirty beans. Keep reading »

Ex-Bodyguard Claims Britney Spears Hit Her Kids With A Belt

Jessica WakemanJune 30, 2010 //

Is Britney Spears a “Toxic” parent? Ex-bodyguard Fernando Flores allegedly claims she hit her kids with a belt, the UK’s Sun newspaper reports. A “source” said that according to Flores, last March or early April, Britney “came marching into the pool house and her mansion and demanded [Flores'] belt. He handed it over, but then followed her to into the main hose and claims he witnessed the alleged incident.” Flores also claims Spears fed her sons, Sean Preston and Jayden James, food they are allergic to, including shellfish, which made them ill. Keep reading »

9-Year-Old Girl Gives Birth In China

Ami AngelowiczFebruary 2, 2010 //

In China, an unnamed 9-year-old schoolgirl became one of the youngest mothers in the world this week when she gave birth to a 6-pound baby boy by C-section. Even though her family is refusing to speak publicly about the incident, they claim to have reported the pregnancy to authorities, who are still trying to discover the identity of the father so they can arrest him. Keep reading »

5-Year-Old Body Builder: Kid Sensation Or Child Abuse?

Ami AngelowiczOctober 28, 2009 //

Am I the only one who thinks there is something really wrong with a 5-year-old who has a six-pack? The kid you are looking at (to the left) is one Giuliano Stroe, the 5-year-old who is the toast of Romania after walking on his hands for 33 feet with a medicine ball between his legs and securing a Guinness World Record. His father has been taking him to the gym since he was born and training him vigorously since the age of 2. Pops feels there is no danger in training Giuliano hard, even though he’s barely old enough for kindergarten, but I’m wondering why no one is questioning his safety. It can’t be good to put such physical strain on a body that’s still developing, not to mention the psychological damage he’s probably doing to this kid. I’m sorry, but does anyone else feel like this child is being exploited, kind of like Balloon Boy? And just for the record, I am also against 5-year-old girls getting spray-tanned for beauty pageants. [Daily Mail] Keep reading »

Child Abuse Charges For Phoenix Family Who Abandoned Their 8-Year-Old Girl After Rape

Jessica WakemanAugust 28, 2009 //

Finally, some good news to come out of this sad story: Phoenix police will pursue felony child abuse charges for the parents, Liberian refugees, who abandoned their eight-year-old daughter in July — after she was allegedly gang-raped by four boys — because they were ashamed.

The boys, ages 10 to 14, who are also Liberian refugees, allegedly lured the eight-year-old girl to a storage shed, by promising her chewing gum, where the alleged assault took place. When the parents learned their daughter had been raped, they apparently told police they did not want her to return home. She has been living in protective custody since the incident.

Ditching their kid is not the main reason police are pursuing abuse charges, however. According to the Associated Press, the young girl and her family have been referred to Child Protective Services in Phoenix five times since the girl was four years old. Altogether, past reports (including several times the young girl was found by neighbors or police to be wandering around the neighborhood by herself stealing or begging for food) could comprise felony child abuse. [Fox News]
Keep reading »

Is Drunk Breastfeeding A Form Of Child Abuse?

Justine FieldsJune 24, 2009 //

Add this to the list of things not to do while drunk: breastfeed. Stacey Anvarinia, 26, from North Dakota, didn’t catch that memo. Earlier this year, police officers responded to an unrelated call at her home when they noticed she was drinking while breastfeeding. The brilliant cops weren’t sure if that was okay, so they put in a call to the local hospital to confirm that was not so good for the 6-week-old baby. The baby was taken out of Anvarinia’s custody. Yesterday, she plead guilty to child neglect and now she’s facing up to five years in prison. Clearly, the baby was put in harm’s way, even if the cops didn’t know it at first. But do you think this should be considered child abuse? [Grand Fork Herald] Keep reading »

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