The Truth About Spanking/Hitting

SHOULD SPANKING BE BANNED?

California Assemblywoman Sally J. Lieber is introducing a bill to ban corporal punishment of children in homes. It would make it a misdemeanor to hit infants and babies. A majority of states already ban its use in schools. No state bans its use in homes. Should corporal punishment be banned in all settings for children, even homes?

WHAT IS CORPORAL PUNISHMENT?

Corporal punishment is the intentional infliction of physical pain to punish misbehavior. Corporal punishment often used against children includes spanking, pulling ears, pinching and hitting with instruments like belts, whips, and paddles.

A HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUE

Proponents of banning corporal punishment of children say it is a human rights issue. In the US, corporal punishment was once lawful for wives, slaves, military personnel, people in institutions, and prisoners. Laws have been passed to give all adults protection from this practice. We continue to allow children, the smallest and most vulnerable people in our society, to be hit. Some people say a law against hitting children is an abuse of parents’ rights. Do we consider it an abuse of husbands’ rights to prohibit hitting wives? “People are not for hitting and children are people too”, says Kansas psychologist and EPOCH-USA Advisory Board member, John Valusek.

REDUCING PHYSICAL ABUSE OF CHILDREN

Many child abuse experts have called for an end to corporal punishment of children as a means of reducing childhood physical abuse. In almost all cases, physical abuse begins as “discipline”, hitting or shaking a child. In New York, 9,031 children were physically abused in 2004 according to the US Department of Health and Human Services. Studies show that actual rates of abuse are much higher. We continue to spend billions of dollars on child abuse treatment. Children continue to fall between the cracks of the institutions that were designed to protect them. Banning corporal punishment of children in schools has led to far fewer physical paddling injuries. Likewise, banning corporal punishment of children in homes would reduce physical abuse in those settings


INTERNATIONAL PROGRESS IN PROTECTING CHILDREN

Sixteen countries, mostly in Europe, have banned corporal punishment of children in all settings including homes. One hundred nine countries have banned corporal punishment in schools. These legal actions were taken to reduce physical abuse of children and give children the right that other human beings have to be free from physical harm. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child through its Committee on the Rights of the child has called on all member states to ban corporal punishment of children and institute education programs on positive discipline. Last year, the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly adopted a resolution calling for a ban of all forms of corporal punishment of children. An international study on violence against children currently before the UN General Assembly calls for a ban on all corporal punishment of children. The author of the report, Dr. Sergio Pinheiro says that calling for an end to all corporal punishment is challenging but “Children’s rights to life, survival, development, dignity and physical integrity do not stop at the door of the family home, not do states’ obligations to ensure these rights for children”.

SHOULD CORPORAL PUNISHMENT OF CHILDREN BE BANNED? YES


CENTER FOR EFFECTIVE DISCIPLINE

The Center for Effective Discipline is a non-profit organization which provides information about the effects of corporal punishment and alternatives to its use. It operates two programs, End Physical Punishment of Children (EPOCH-USA) and the National Coalition to Abolish Corporal Punishment in Schools.

Contact: Nadine Block, Executive Director of the Center for Effective Discipline, 155 W Main Street #1603, Columbus OH 43215

Tel: 614-221-8829 Fax: 614-221-2110 URL: www.stophitting.org

Sally Lieber Takes a Stand Against Hitting Children

Of course, people who desperately want the "right" to hit their kids are up in arms.



No-spanking bill's backer - Mtn. View's Sally Lieber - taking her turn in the spotlight

By Mike Zapler
MediaNews Sacramento Bureau
SACRAMENTO - Assemblywoman Sally Lieber has tackled some controversial issues in her time, writing bills to raise the minimum wage and relieve prison overcrowding. Then she proposed a ban on spanking and sparked a real debate.

The Mountain View Democrat has surged to mini-celebrity status in the few days since the Mercury News published a story on her idea to ban spanking of young children. The Today Show, The Early Show, Good Morning America, Bill O'Reilly, -- you name the program, chances are it's clamoring for an interview with Lieber.

Of course, many view her as the villain, not the hero. But no one questions that the 45-year-old lawmaker has succeeded in generating huge publicity for her cause -- and stirring a national conversation not only about child discipline but about the role of government in general.

``I think we've hit upon an issue,'' Lieber said, in perhaps the understatement of the year.

The issue is pretty simple: Lieber wants to make spanking children age 3 and under a misdemeanor. Offenders could face up to a year in jail or up to a $1,000 fine, though first-time violators would probably only have to attend parenting classes.

Lieber has yet to even introduce a bill, but the mere description of her idea in a Mercury News article this week triggered a hailstorm of reaction -- most of it negative, some of it viciously personal. The story appeared to break a Mercury News record for most online feedback -- as of Friday afternoon, it had elicited 86 pages of reader comments, along with many, many dozens of e-mails. Some defended spanking; many others said the government has no business telling them how to raise their kids.

``Unreal,'' ``absurd,'' and ``idiotic'' were some of the gentler adjectives readers used.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger fed the spanking frenzy on Thursday when, responding to questions from the Mercury News, he said he ``got smacked about everything'' as a child in Austria but has never hit his own kids. Schwarzenegger had doubts about how a spanking ban would be enforced but said Lieber's idea seems well-intentioned.

Friday afternoon, Lieber was holed up in her office in Mountain View after returning from an interview on CNN. A crew from Good Morning America was camped out in her lobby for hours, waiting to get her on camera. ``I'm under siege,'' Lieber said, only half-joking.

Much of the media coverage of her bill has been snide or dismissive -- with a decided ``there go those California kooks again'' tone. Still, Lieber said her proposal is getting the kind of public hearing she could have only dreamed of.

``The volume tells me this issue is very ingrained in society,'' she said. ``People are very wedded to the ability to physically punish children, but almost across the board say they don't do it.'' Actually, dozens of Mercury News readers defended the use of an occasional spank to keep kids in line.

Barbara O'Connor, who studies the interplay of politics and the media, said Lieber may be misreading the tidal wave of reaction.

``It's the kind of bill that comes up in every session of the Legislature that feeds the perception that governmental representatives are clueless,'' said O'Connor, director of the Institute for Study of Politics and the Media at Sacramento State University. ``People don't want government telling them how to raise their family.''

And it's the kind of story the media loves, she said, because it's easy to explain and provokes a visceral response.

``It's something everyone has an opinion about,'' O'Connor said. ``It's water cooler conversation.''

Some reader comments have personally assailed the assemblywoman. Seizing on the fact that Lieber has a cat but no children, one person called her ``the cat lady'' and another a ``spinster'' who's ignorant about child rearing.

Lieber said she wasn't bothered by the insults. ``I'd rather be called a few names,'' she said, ``than know there are children out there being beaten who are defenseless.''

And she has no intention of backing down, even though the issue has become all-consuming. Lieber said she began fielding media calls at 7 a.m. Friday, and her chief of staff claimed he was so busy answering the phone that he didn't have time to shower.

``In a sense I kind of feel like, `Hey, is this the biggest issue we ought to be dealing with?' '' Lieber said. ``But then again, children of a very young age shouldn't be beaten, so this is a fundamental issue.''

Disturbing Statistic

From wnbc.com:

Report: Suspected Child Abuse Deaths Rise In NYC

POSTED: 9:01 am EST January 8, 2007
UPDATED: 11:07 am EST January 8, 2007
NEW YORK -- Deaths of children suspected of being abused are on the rise in New York City.


The New York Post reports that in 2006 there were 40 such deaths as opposed to 25 in 2005. The newspaper compared data between Jan. 1 through Nov. 30 for both years.
The number of child abuse cases reported is also on the rise, according to data from the city's Administration for Children's Services. As of Dec. 28, 67,953 cases of child abuse and neglect were reported to caseworkers. That compares to 52,023 the year before.
The increases is leading to long waiting times at Family Court and taxing the child welfare system.
The ACS underwent a major overhaul last year as a result of the brutal beating death of Nixmary Brown. The 7-year-old Brooklyn girl's parents could face life in prison on charges of murder. Her mother, Nixzaliz Santiago, is scheduled to appear in court today in Brooklyn.