Society is making great strides in increasing awareness of oppression and injustice, but one group remain mistreated, with unequal human rights, and remains under-discussed: children.
Commonly recommended parenting and discipline methods, such as sleep training, school isolations and public shaming treat children in inhumane ways that would cause uproar if adults would treated similarly. Children's needs and feelings are frequently dismissed and ignored by adults. They are taught to blindly obey adults in the name of 'respect', though respect is so rarely shown to them by adults. We are a society who are afraid of treating children kindly, as evidenced by the almost constant uproar and ridicule of the 'gentle parenting' movement by the media today.
Because each of us have been raised to believe that the rights of children matter less than those of adults, we subconsciously continue the cycle of childism from one generation to the next. Inside each of us is buried hurt, generational trauma and shame, and decades - if not centuries - of prejudice towards children. It's time to change things. It is ridiculous that children, the future of our world and the key to smashing all other stereotypes, are the last oppressed group to have their maltreatment fully recognised.
This is a timely book, a blend of childcare history, sociology, psychology, anthropology and current affairs and pop-culture coverage, aiming to raise awareness of a much undiscussed issue, but one that will surely be spoken of increasingly in the future. It is an urgent call to action. If we want to change the world for the better, we must start with treating our children better.
About the Author
Sarah Ockwell-Smith is the mother of four children. She has a BSc in Psychology and worked for several years in Pharmaceutical Research and Development. Following the birth of her first child, Sarah re-trained as a Paediatric Homeopath, Antenatal Teacher and Birth and Postnatal Doula. She has also undertaken training in Baby Massage, Hypnotherapy and Psychotherapy. Sarah specialises in gentle parenting methods and is co-founder of the GentleParenting website. Sarah writes a parenting blog which is read by 3 million parents per year, and is the author of BabyCalm, ToddlerCalm, The Gentle Sleep Book, The Gentle Parenting Book, The Gentle Discipline Book, The Gentle Potty Training Book, The Gentle Eating Book, The Second Baby Book, The Starting School Book Between: A guide for parents of eight to thirteen-year-olds, How to Be a Calm Parent and Beginnings.
She frequently writes for magazines and newspapers, and is often called upon as a parenting expert for national television and radio.
