The psycho-historical study of childhood has provided tangible evidence that since the ancients and even in modern times, childhood was and is still characterized by abuse which ranges from emotional, physical, neglect, and sexual abuse. At its core, child abuse is defined by the World Health organization as any act or failure to act that violates the rights of children as well as endangers their health, survival and development. Child abuse has always been with us despite the numerous efforts to curb the act. The only difference is that it has evolved over the years. Notably, the phenomenon of child abuse is deeply rooted and intertwined with historical values, religious, and cultural perspectives. Throughout history, the concept of child abuse has been redefined. From viewing children as property, child abuse in the form of neglect, sexual, physical, and emotional abuse has evolved over the years, with each period in history having a different opinion of how children should be treated.
Ancient Times
In ancient times children were abused through the various forms of child abuse noted above. One of the earliest forms of physical abuse and neglect was child labor. Commonly known as an indenture, parents would apprentice young children of less than fourteen years to their masters who taught them to trade (Hindman, 2016). However, the masters were free to use these children as slaves who were a cheap source of labor in exchange for trade education. In the ancient times of the United States for instance, children were brought to colonies to work. Furthermore, child labor was regarded as inexpensive to the labor market. This is because a child could be hired for less than an adult. Besides, some jobs such as mining and sweeping of chimneys in the factories were suitable for small bodies. As if subjecting them to such labor was not enough, children would be chained to prevent them from escaping.
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Besides physical abuse and neglect, children were also sexually abused during ancient times. The female child especially was sexually abused and exploited because she was deemed as her father’s property. Therefore, the father could do as he pleased with her. For instance, the sealing of a betrothal could be done by having sex with underage girls, in most cases less than twelve years. Back then, marriage for extremely young girls was not uncommon. Furthermore, sex with people under legal age was not treated as a problem in American society until the issue became of concern among ancient Christian theologians. In Medieval, Miscellany Larbarge reveals that girls, particularly the wealthy ones would be married off between the ages of five and ten (Karras, 2017). Basically, pedophilia was legal because once the young girl became married, they would be regarded as their husband’s property which resulted in little or no protection by the law.
The subject of discipline in ancient times also subjected children to emotional abuse. Methods use to discipline children in ancient times would be open to censure in modern times. For instance, children would be subjected to corporal punishment since parents were expected by society to raise children that are morally sound and industrious to the community. The dominance of children by the elders of the community exposed them to emotional abuse. Also, around the 17 th Century, affluent families would send their newborn babies to wet nurses, who in most cases had children of their own. This denied black children time to bond with their own parents. The denial of parental bonding was a form of emotional abuse.
The Nineteenth Century
Admittedly the rigid standards of society during this time greatly influenced attitudes towards child abuse. In regards to physical abuse, both girls and boys were subjected to measures such as removal of the clitoris and the slitting of the penis into two (Earp, Kraus, Bader, Alexander, O’Neill & Abducaldir, 2019). This was physically damaging to the girls and boys. Some died at an early age due to such practices. Often children were abused for attempts of sexual activity which often onset with masturbation. In the nineteenth century, masturbation was regarded as a precursor for either retardation or insanity.
During this era, sexual abuse of children continued to flourish. Furthermore society protected child molesters. For instance, some men publicly revered their interests in young girls. Some went to the extent of actualizing their sexual desires. Infamous men such as William Wordsworth revealed their interest in young girls. Edgar Allan also married a thirteen-year-old girl. Even though the nineteenth century perceived such unions as child abuse, the marriage of young girls was also common at the time (Gudkov, 2019). Another child molester, Lewis Carrol was known for taking nude photographs of children. Also, child prostitution increased during this era where children would be frequented in city slums. Raja (2019) reveals that in the early nineteenth-century slave masters would impregnate young girls of less than 12 years for breeding.
Children of this period were also prone to emotional abuse and neglect. This was mainly as a result of the institution of slavery. Often, families would be separated. For instance, the father would be separated from the mother and the children. In another instance, mothers would be forced to leave behind their children and work in farms that were miles far. Fredrick Douglas who initially lived as a slave in Massachusetts and later escaped to Maryland is a good example of how children were emotionally abused (Raja, 2019). Douglas narrated how from a tender age he was separated from his father. In addition, his mother worked very far from where he used to live with his grandmother. As a result, Douglas would be obligated to walk many miles on a daily basis. The separation from his father also emotionally abuses because he lacked the necessary parental attachment.
The Modern Times
It is evident that the current society harbors contradictory grounds on child abuse. On one hand, there is the statement that children should not endure any form of abuse. Yet on the other child abuse still thrives even in modern times under all forms. From a sexual abuse standpoint, for instance, society is keen to state that children should not be sexually exploited. This is contradictory in that child pornography thrives on the internet. Besides statistics reveal that child sexual abuse has become rampant in the U.S. with over 14 out of 1000 children being sexually abused annually. In 2018, approximately 76, 532 children were sexually abused (Piccirillo, 2019). Further studies reveal that one out of 4 and 9 men and women respectively have been victims of child abuse at a tender age. Besides the United States, the criminal justice system is more likely to believe adult molesters than children who have been sexually abused. The internet also has been used as a vehicle for molesters and perpetrators to contact children for sex. Such practices reveal that child abuse continues to exist among us even in modern times.
Children have also continually been abused physically by being subjected to hard labor. Some of the global companies use raw resources in which child labor has been used for their finished products. According to a report by Amnesty International, batteries for smartphones in companies such as Apple, Samsung, and Sony contain cobalt that has been mined by children in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Francoise, 2016). The failure of these electronic brands to do basic checks to ensure that child laborers have not been used in their products is a confirmation of the continued physical abuse of children.
It is also worth noting that in modern times children have been exposed to neglect and emotional abuse. Currently, most households in the U.S. are either by single families. Often the fathers of these kids have neglected their parental responsibility to the children. Besides, there has been a rise in the number of children in foster homes in the U.S. Usually, children are taken in foster homes following emotional abuse and neglect by their parents and caregivers. The high number of children under foster care indicates that children are still undergoing neglect. Additionally, the process of separation from their biological parents can result in emotional distress for the child.
Actions by the United States to Prevent Child Abuse
Child abuse has consequences on the victims’ health and also long term effects. Most of these children are likely to have complications in health in the form of drug and substance abuse, depression and early deaths. As a result of the prevalence of child abuse as well as the array of lifetime consequences, the economic costs are high which a huge financial burden to the United States is. The entire country has adopted strategies to prevent child abuse before it takes place. One of the ways is through parental support (Prinz, 2016). If parents abuse their children, they could become dysfunctional and eventually suffer neglect. Also, the government encourages public dissemination of information regarding victims of child abuse.
Across the 50 states of the United States, there are statutes identifying persons who are mandated to report cases of child abuse. This is called mandatory reporting. Mandated reporters include health workers, teachers, mental health workers, clergy, and the police (Liu & Vaughn, 2019). They are required to report in agencies such as child protective services, or even using hotlines that are specifically used for reporting cases of child abuse. Although guidelines differ by state, reports are inclusive not only confirmed abuse but also cases of suspicion.
Conclusively, child abuse in its various forms which include sexual, physical, emotional, and neglect has evolved over the years. Though in different ways, even in modern times children are subjected to abuse just like the old times. The United States government, however, has taken some steps such as parenting support and mandatory reporting across its fifty states to curb child abuse.
References
Earp, B. D., Kraus, C., Bader, D., Alexander, S., O'Neill, S., & Abducaldir, J. (2019). The Brussels Collaboration on Bodily Integrity. Medically Unnecessary Genital Cutting and the Rights of the Child: Moving Toward Consensus. Guest Editorial. The American Journal of Bioethics , 19 (10), 17-28.
Francoise, S. (2016). Your Smartphone Is Probably Powered by Child Labor at Mines in Africa. Retrieved 21 January 2020, from https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/a394gp/smartphones-child-labor-cobalt-mines-africa-congo-amnesty-international
Gudkov, D. (2019). Incest in the Nineteenth-Century American Literature.
Hindman, H. D. (2016). Child labor: an American history . Routledge.
Liu, B. C. C., & Vaughn, M. S. (2019). Legal and policy issues from the United States and internationally about mandatory reporting of child abuse. International journal of law and psychiatry , 64 , 219-229.
Piccirillo, R. (2019). The Sexual Assault Epidemic in Education: A Comparative Look at the United States and Australia. Suffolk Transnat'l L. Rev. , 42 , 201. Karras, R. M. (2017). Sexuality in medieval Europe: Doing unto others . Routledge.
Prinz, R. J. (2016). Parenting and family support within a broad child abuse prevention strategy: Child maltreatment prevention can benefit from public health strategies. Child abuse & neglect , 51 , 400.
Raja, M. M. R. (2019). Intersectional Incidents: Harriet Jacobs and the Intersectionality of Slave Women’s Experience in Nineteenth-Century America.
