Include the Children in our Quest for Freedom and Justice
As humans and gifted with the ability to think and reason, we always strive to acquire human rights, namely freedom from cruelty, inhumanity and discrimination. However, we sometimes fail to achieve these due to several unforeseen circumstances.
Why Can’t We Include the younger Generation in our Quest for Freedom and Justice?
It is a widespread belief that children do not have the ability to stand up to demand for freedom, equality and justice as adult can. Sometimes, some religions, cultures and beliefs exclude children from all aspects of decision making.
While adults continue to fight for human rights every minute of their life, somehow, they have a notion that children do not need or deserve the same levels of freedom and rights. This type of thinking takes up most of the adults beliefs despite the paradox that it would seem OK to grant children a greater freedom in other aspects of their daily behavior and routines. Due to the innocence and “still developing” intelligence and knowledge of children, societies think that children do not demand or deserve the freedoms adults strive for.
Moreover, while adults protest against corporal punishment against them, they go on to encourage the same against children. “Spare the rod and spoil the child” is usually used as a justification to induce corporal punishment on children. Even prisons have passed laws to eradicate beating and back breaking labor against criminals, while our innocent children have to undergo the harsh punishments for minor infringements.
My opinion is that adults deserve “pain as punishment” for misdemeanor more than children do. The norms of society dictate that children are always learning on the expectations of the world and how they should behave in all the essence of the societies culture. Whilst nobody condones pain as a punishment, many adults still believe that physical pain, cruel and inhumane treatment are the ultimate ways to bring children on the path of righteousness. When adults find themselves forced to suffer punitive physical pain, we consider such treatment to be inhumane, cruel and unusual punishment, abusive treatment, and even torture in some cases, these are the same people who will either support or keep silent when children undergo the same punishment.
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