Child Brides - Tradition or State Sanctioned Rape?

Martina · 04-10-2010, 04:27 PM

The Quran says that women have a right to choose their own husbands.

The Yemeni cases have been appalling. There have been cases of girls raised in Britain who know little about Yemeni culture -- visiting their fathers or their grandparents in Yemen -- and being kept against their wishes and married to old men.

i have a Master's degree in Anthropology. The cultural relativism arguments have been drilled into me. I also know that we are at war in so many ways with traditional cultures, many of which are Muslim, and much of the politics behind that "war" are not mine. But i don't care. DON'T CARE. These are human rights violations. It is 2010 for all the world everywhere. Ruining people's bodies, minds, and spirits -- i don't care if your culture falls apart because of it, but end it.

If the Aztecs were still doing human sacrifice daily, i think the world would have something to say about it.

Women in the Middle East are working to stop these atrocities. We should support them.

i love Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times, who co-wrote Half the Sky. He helps women around the world tell their stories. He came to these stories with no ax to grind, no personal investment. He was just a reporter, and he couldn't turn away when he saw what was happening. i love people like that.

Gemme · 04-10-2010, 04:56 PM

Years and years ago, it wasn't uncommon for girls to marry early and move out of their family's home here. Of course, that was because age 14 was not the same as it is now. Fourteen then is like 25 or 26 (guessimate) now, due to living longer and all of the lovely improvements and progress we've made along the way. For the most part, we've adapted our level of what is and is not an acceptable age for a girl to enter into marriage according to our growth and progress as a nation and as individuals, including the fact that we simply live longer, so there's more time to reproduce and provide for our families now.

A lot of countries haven't had the opportunities that the U.S. has had to improve the lifespans of the inhabitants. Part of me wants to fall in line with the 'but it's their CULTURE' crowd and part of me wants to acknowledge that many of those countries would be run very differently if they had access to all that we do here. Part of me also wants to turn vigilante and beat the shit out of anyone and everyone who's ever hurt a child, be it male or female. That's my shit to own and figure out how to cease and desist, though.

I started out with a clear vision of what I wanted to say, but I'm at work and a bit distracted and I suppose I haven't anything really to add to the discussion, I guess. *shrug*

04-10-2010, 04:56 PM	#2
Gemme Practically Lives Here How Do You Identify?: Queer Stone Femme Girl of the Unicorn Variety Preferred Pronoun?: She, as in 'She's a GEM' Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: The roads are narrow here Posts: 36,631 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 182,498 Thanked 107,926 Times in 25,666 Posts Rep Power: 21474887	Years and years ago, it wasn't uncommon for girls to marry early and move out of their family's home here. Of course, that was because age 14 was not the same as it is now. Fourteen then is like 25 or 26 (guessimate) now, due to living longer and all of the lovely improvements and progress we've made along the way. For the most part, we've adapted our level of what is and is not an acceptable age for a girl to enter into marriage according to our growth and progress as a nation and as individuals, including the fact that we simply live longer, so there's more time to reproduce and provide for our families now. A lot of countries haven't had the opportunities that the U.S. has had to improve the lifespans of the inhabitants. Part of me wants to fall in line with the 'but it's their CULTURE' crowd and part of me wants to acknowledge that many of those countries would be run very differently if they had access to all that we do here. Part of me also wants to turn vigilante and beat the shit out of anyone and everyone who's ever hurt a child, be it male or female. That's my shit to own and figure out how to cease and desist, though. I started out with a clear vision of what I wanted to say, but I'm at work and a bit distracted and I suppose I haven't anything really to add to the discussion, I guess. shrug __________________ Gemme's Journal I'm misunderestimated.

04-10-2010, 04:27 PM	#1
Martina Senior Member How Do You Identify?: * Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: * Posts: 4,999 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 13,409 Thanked 18,283 Times in 4,166 Posts Rep Power: 21474854	The Quran says that women have a right to choose their own husbands. The Yemeni cases have been appalling. There have been cases of girls raised in Britain who know little about Yemeni culture -- visiting their fathers or their grandparents in Yemen -- and being kept against their wishes and married to old men. i have a Master's degree in Anthropology. The cultural relativism arguments have been drilled into me. I also know that we are at war in so many ways with traditional cultures, many of which are Muslim, and much of the politics behind that "war" are not mine. But i don't care. DON'T CARE. These are human rights violations. It is 2010 for all the world everywhere. Ruining people's bodies, minds, and spirits -- i don't care if your culture falls apart because of it, but end it. If the Aztecs were still doing human sacrifice daily, i think the world would have something to say about it. Women in the Middle East are working to stop these atrocities. We should support them. i love Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times, who co-wrote Half the Sky. He helps women around the world tell their stories. He came to these stories with no ax to grind, no personal investment. He was just a reporter, and he couldn't turn away when he saw what was happening. i love people like that.