Ban Corporal Punishment for Children

Every year around 900,000 cases of child abuse are officially reported, while the actual number of cases including those unreported lingers closer to around 2.7 million. With so many children in the U.S. facing abuse on a daily basis, something must be done to make it easier to detect child abuse. This is why corporal punishment for children should be banned altogether. This legislation will make it easier not only to detect early signs of child abuse, it will also deter parents and schools from using this as a means of punishment

There are many reasons, which show why this legislation would make a gargantuan positive impact on American society. Physical punishment has numerous adverse effects of the child receiving it; these effects include low self-esteem, lack of knowledge about proper instances in which to use physical force, and resentment. According to the report, New Hope for Preventing Child Abuse and Neglect, from www.fightcrime.org, "Of the 900,000 children who have confirmed cases of abuse or neglect in one year, an additional 35,000 violent criminals and more than 250 murders will emerge as adults who would ever have become violent criminals if now for the abuse and neglect they endured as children" (Kass 2).

Another adverse effect occurs when corporal punishment gets out of hand. Often times when the adult disciplines a child, they are still angry and find it harder to control their temper. This can lead to a quick elevation in the force used to discipline the child; this excess force could be prevented if the adult had stayed calm when the child performed the undesirable act. Deaths from abuse and neglect average around 1,300 per year officially, but could easily spike to over 2,000 if all cases were reported.

Corporal punishment if often used as a form of education- to teach the child the difference between right and wrong, although the logic behind the argument fails to verify the claim. When a child is physically punished, they learn that the adult is angry, probably about the act they just performed (this holds true especially young children). Even if the child if older and understands the connection between the unacceptable act he performed and the adult's anger, they only know that this specific adult is displeased by it, not that society as a whole views the act in such a negative way. Furthermore, the child does not specifically learn why the act is wrong; they simply know not to perform it around the adult again.

Another problem with physical punishment occurs when the punishment is executed after a prolonged period of time, such as when the child is at home with his mother, commits the act, and is then told, "Wait until your father gets home!". Once the punishment is administered it is infinitely harder for the child to make a connection between the act and the punishment. And yet again, it still does not provide a reason as to why his actions were intolerable.

Many advocates of corporal punishment would argue that it can be an effective way to deter young children from carrying out certain acts, but the link between physical punishment and abuse is clear. The definition of child abuse is, according to the Utah State Court's Glossary of Legal Terms, "any form of cruelty to a child's physical, moral, or mental well-being". Physical abuse can cause brutal damage to any one of these states or worse, all three. As stated earlier, physical abuse can and does get out of hand at times. This can leave the child with bruises, scars, or even broken bones. Physical abuse can also show the child that it is alright to use violence as a way of disciplining, so perhaps, next time he's playing with his little sister he'll find it okay to punish her when she does something wrong. And finally, physical punishment especially when it crosses the line into abuse can cause damage to a child's mental well being, making them more self-conscious, withdrawn, and depressed.

There is a thin line between physical punishment and abuse, yet even worse is that this physical punishment is often directed at those in our society who cannot protect or speak up for themselves. It's not only parents who physically discipline children, schools still do also. In North Carolina over 65 school districts still permit corporal punishment. The effects can be not only disastrous, but also irreversible. A quote from the editorial, Stop Spanking, says it all, "It makes little sense to teach children to settle their differences with words rather than fists- and then spank them if they don't comply" (Winston-Salem 1).

Works Cited

Glossary of Legal Terms. 7 Mar 2007. Online. 23 Mar 2007. .

It Is Time To Stop Putting Children Second in the UK and USA. 17 Jul 2004. Online. 23 Mar 2007. .

Jones, Eliot. Corporal Punishment (for children) . 15 Nov 2000. Online. 23 Mar 2007. .

Kass, David, Cate Miller, Miriam Rollin, Phil Evans, and Rita Shah. New Hope for Preventing Child Abuse and Neglect. Washington D.C.:Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, 2003.

Stop Spanking. 21 Mar 2007. Online. 23 Mar 2007. .

The National Center for Victims of Crime: Child Abuse. 14 Jun 1997. Online. 23 Mar 2007. .