The question of the day (week/year/decade/century): Dear Free-Range Kids: I was wondering if you had any advice when you are met with the following argument against Free-Range Parenting..This came up the other day when I was having a conversation with an opponent to Free-Ranging, and it’s one I’ve heard before. They were arguing against letting a 9-year-old walk by themselves, for fear of them being kidnapped/raped/murdered. . Now, this person completely admitted that the statistical likelihood of this happening was extremely remote. They further admitted that many other things are more dangerous to kids that they don’t protect them from;…
Author: lskenazy
So much of Free-Range Kids is about fighting the restrictions on kids’ freedom. Here’s a video that just might serve as a rallying cry for the kids themselves. KIDS, LOOK WHAT YOU’RE MISSING! DEMAND SOCIETY GIVE IT BACK! . . Kudso to GO RVing for such a wonderful ad. When our family took our big RV trip a few years back, the campsites were filled with kids running around as if it was an old-fashioned neighborhood. It struck me as odd that parents would let their kids be so free among strangers, but perhaps less so at home. This ad…
Is there someone out there who can research why we are experiencing a wave of moms convinced that strangers are about to steal their kids from them in public and pimp them out? Or at least, a wave of moms that re-posts stories by other moms convinced that this just (well, almost just) happened? Because here’s the latest and one of the kookiest: Mom at store not only believes that two “Middle Eastern men” men were sex traffickers eyeing her kids the way a dog eyes a couple of hotdogs, but that her quick-thinking and knife wielding thwarted their evil…
A new study by the University of Iowa found that younger kids have a harder time gauging exactly when it’s safe to cross the street. This is not surprising, but it is a good reminder to neighborhoods that their job is to make it easy and safe for kids to walk around (as Safe Routes to School does) — not to say, “That’s why we have to drive them.” Alas, America’s #1 parenting magazine, Parents, presented the study exactly the way you’d hope it would not: “Science Says Kids Shouldn’t Cross a Busy Street Solo Until They’re 14.” My kids…
A guest post from mom J.W. Curtis: Let me first admit that I made a parenting judgment yesterday, and it came back to bite me. I saw Beauty and the Beast with my youngest daughter (10) and her friend. Who doesn’t love a movie with a Free-Range leading character? Parenting themes about judging others on appearances were all around us…including my own about the other parents at the theater. We caught the early matinee on the last day of school break and it was crowded. Long lines at the ticket counter (why don’t I ever order ahead online?) and…
Believe it or not, this graphic is from the refrigerator magnet of University of California Irvine Prof. Barbara Sarnecka, one of the three authors of that fantastic study proving that when we believe we are rationally assessing child danger, we are actually morally judging. Some other family member put the magnet on the fridge and when Barbara noticed it, she sent it along with a email high-five. As she wrote, “It looks to me that it’s mostly about when NOT to call. Perhaps the police are sick of all the unnecessary alarmism? It’s sort of the opposite of ‘If you…
Long story short: A dad returning from Mexico with his 3-year-old daughter who has lighter skin than his is suspected of sex trafficking her. (And not to pile on, but it was a nfzrkhkitr United flight.) Despite papa having her passport, his passport, AND a notarized letter from the mom saying that she gave them her permission to travel, the authorities felt compelled to act upon a “tip” — a tip that was nothing more than a passenger’s hunch fueled by the hysteria of the moment: That 3-year-olds are being trafficked right and left in the USA. As the mom,…
A few days ago a man in Winnipeg walked up to a lemonade stand run by five kids and gave them five $20 bills. He also handed them a card of his. Here’s how it unfolded in the press. Toby McCrae, mom of one of the l’il lemonade entrepreneurs, heard from her son that: “‘He gave $20 to each of us and he told us we could learn to not pay taxes,'” said McCrae. “I said, ‘That’s really weird.'” Along with five $20 bills, the man also handed the boys a business card for an anti-tax website promising to educate…
This is a story you probably already heard with a heavy heart: A North Carolina boy, 5, and his family were visiting a rotating restaurant in Atlanta: The boy had wandered away from his family but was only a few feet from their table when the accident happened. “Somehow, the child became lodged between the wall and a table as the dining area rotated,” Atlanta Police Officer Stephanie Brown told Buzzfeed News. He died of his injuries. So outrageously sad. Can you guess what the chorus of commenters is saying? If you can’t, perhaps this whole “internet” thing is new…
This oped in today’s New York Times is important: The Wrong Way to Keep Kids Safe From Predators By MICHELLE STEVENS My heart is racing as he kisses my cheek. “Bye, Mom,” he says. Then he grabs his backpack and walks away. I want to snatch him back. I’ll settle for puking instead. It’s the summer of 2015, and my baby is going off to camp. It’s 3,000 miles away. It’s his first time flying on a plane by himself. When he gets to the other side, a stranger will pick him up and drive him to the Poconos. To…