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Subscribe to RSSMarried at the age of 8. That fact alone is hard to fathom. It's even more difficult to stomach when you think of the resulting forced sex, physical abuse and early pregnancies that often result. But for girls in more than 50 countries in the developing world, and for a minority in the developed world, this is their reality. The reality of child marriage.
Stephanie Sinclair / VIl
Faiz, 40, and Ghulam, 11, sit in her home prior to their wedding in the rural Damarda Village, Afghanistan on Sept. 11, 2005. Ghulam said she is sad to be getting engaged as she wanted to be a teacher.
Photojournalist Stephanie Sinclair has been documenting this issue around the world since 2003. A large body of her work was published last year in National Geographic.
We asked Sinclair to tell us more about her reporting:
How did you come up with this story idea and how long have you been reporting it?
This project began in 2003, after I met several girls in Herat, Afghanistan who had attempted suicide by self-immolation. I noticed that many of the girls who had set themselves on fire had been married at very young ages, in many cases prepubescent. It was the first time I’d ever encountered anyone who had been married so young. This phenomenon seemed to link many of these girls and this intense act of desperation. I couldn’t help but feel a responsibility to research and document whatever it was that would make these girls take such drastic measures. The resulting project has taken almost a decade to date, and I am still working on the issue. What makes it so complicated is its prevalence in more than 50 countries worldwide. To document it properly, one needs to address the many cultural reasons behind the issue as well as the differing impacts on the varying societies.
How many different countries did you travel to for this story, and how did you gain access to these sensitive stories and events?
I have documented this issue in Afghanistan, Nepal, India, Ethiopia and Yemen. Access has always been incredibly difficult for several reasons. The most obvious obstacle is that parents and families innately know that what they are doing can harm their children. But they continue this harmful traditional practice because they may feel societal pressures, have concerns for their safety and well being should they remain unmarried, or may even need to simply sell their girls in a desperate move to feed their other children. Fortunately, almost every image in this project was done with the help of the locals living within these societies. They wanted this issue to get support so they could be further empowered to combat child marriage. Those people were key in helping me gain access, and telling these stories would have been impossible without them.
Stephanie Sinclair / VII
Nujood Ali was ten when she fled her abusive, much older husband and took a taxi to the courthouse in Sanaa, Yemen. The girl's courageous act and the landmark legal battle that ensued turned her into an international heroine for women's rights. Now divorced, she is back home with her family and attending school again.
What is most disturbing to you about child marriage and what would you most like people to know about it?
There are many disturbing factors related to child marriage. But I think the thing that we must acknowledge is that in most cases these young children do not want to be married. They want normal lives — to play with their friends, be educated and have a full adolescence. These marriages rob many girls of their innocence, many times before puberty, and this is something that as a global society we cannot tolerate. The bottom line is child marriage isn't just harmful to the girls involved. It's at the root of so many other societal ills: poverty, disease, maternal mortality, infant mortality, violence against women. All of those are symptoms connected to the same problem: child marriage. If you solve the child marriage problem, these other issues benefit as well.
Is there a solution?
A multifaceted approach is needed to address the issue of child marriage. In fact, yesterday Sec. Hillary Clinton announced a USAID-sponsored pilot program in Bangladesh that will work with religious leaders, media, local governments and NGOs to foster community support for an end to child marriage. However education is still the single most protective factor against this practice. This means keeping the children in school as long as possible, as well as educating the communities about its harmful impact on the health of their girls, their grandchildren, as well as their societies as a whole.
I also strongly believe there is not just a need for awareness-raising and prevention work, but we must find ways to help these girls who are already in these marriages — be it through giving financial incentives to their families to let them stay in school, or vocational training so they can have more say in their lives and households. Quality medical treatment is also needed for girls who are giving birth at these young ages. These girls need long-term solutions. Unfortunately, there is no quick fix. But there seems to be a growing movement aimed at ending child marriage. In fact, at yesterday's State Department announcement, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, chairman of The Elders, announced a very ambitious goal: to end the practice by 2030. If this issue remains a global priority, I'm optimistic that we can meet that deadline.
To mark the first inaugural International Day of the Girl Child on October 11, 2012, the United Nations Population Fund will partner with VII Photo to host an exhibition at the United Nations Headquarters in New York to present the personal narrative of the girls themselves. The hope is that their stories, presented in photography and video productions by Stephanie Sinclair and Jessica Dimmock, will renew global attention toward this critical issue and accountability across the international community. Archbishop Desmond Tutu and UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon will be among many prominent figures attending the opening.
- Follow the campaign at Too Young to Wed and tooyoungtowed.wordpress.com
- See additional images from Sinclair's project and read more about child marriage at National Geographic Magazine
- View a video including interviews with some of the child brides at the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting
- Read 'In Niger, child marriage on rise due to hunger' in PhotoBlog
Sign up for the NBCNews.com Photos Newsletter
Leave a Comment:
where in the u.s.?
Most states allow that to happen at 16 with parental consent, but judges may allow it much younger.
lilirocks, please cite your source for judges allowing marriage marriage 'much younger' than 16
~~If you're not outraged by the direction of this country, you're just not paying attention!~~
lilirock's sources may be firsthand....in the deep south where it's common to have your mother be your sister and your sister to be your wife
That is not even a serious response to a serious topic.
"But for girls in more than 50 countries around the world and in the U.S., this is their reality."
Hey Meredith Birkett, you got a source for your statement that girls at the age of 8 get married to men in the USA? Or at MSNBC do you just get to write whatever you want?
Where in the U.S???? Well, These "3rd world" cockroaches are allowed to enter and live here in US, Thank You israel, you B@$T@RDS, and along with this human sewage comes "their cultures" which are really nomenclature cover up excuses for their debauchery and abominations, like "sharia law", in which children and Women are EXPLOITED and often totured and/or Killed. Solution? E L I M I N A T I O N of this "human" scum... or they are gonna' reproduce, like the cockroaches they are, and overwhelm our "law EnFARCEment". the D&D( dunkin doughnuts) Cops can't handle what is here already....
Did I say ALL that???????????????????1st amen
Wow.. how Hitler of you... Nazi Much?
Well Put in Pot; If by chance you have a daughter would you like her to be beaten terribly and then raped by an "other than a Man"? As Men, Real men DO NOT do that to Females....Not Hitler of Anybody but dealing with SCUM As They Will Be Dealt With, Put 'N Pot.............
I just love the hopeless contradictions of post-modern feminism. It may be OK to kill your unborn baby if it happens to be inconvenient to let it live, but it is not OK to let your daughter get married at 11. How do you pick amongst these things?
Unfortunatly, the USA can't be the world morality police. These countries have operated this way(a MANS law)since the beginning of time. Men are bigger and men are in charge. What do you want to do? Bomb them. The girl who ran away was beyond brave, but the women have to change this, otherwise why should anything change. It's beyond ugly but unless the women arm themselves the men don't care what the world thinks of them. We can wish and moan all we want but how would you really stop it? We'll see how long this post lives.
To..bloggit""""
Well how did you ....
Where in the US???
Colorado City Arizona....you know where Warren Jeffs and his polygamist pedophile incestual friends live.
Question: Have ever had a conversation with a woman who has had an abortion?
Wow, and Romney's religion would allow him to marry any number of 6 year olds. And his wealth means he wouldn't have to bother marring them.
Bloggit-shut up.
bloggit-
Why don't you add to that list...invading a country that did nothing to you and killing over 100,000 of them including children.
bloggit: Get off your righteous pro-life soapbox and try to comprehend what the article stated: But they continue this harmful traditional practice because they may feel societal pressures, have concerns for their safety and well being should they remain unmarried, or may even need to simply sell their girls in a desperate move to feed their other children.
too many children + not enough resources = child bride. How can you not see the relation here? If the women of these countries had the appropriate resources (birth control), education, and community support, there wouldn't be too many children to feed and little girls wouldn't be sold into marriage, right? I know, I know, I'm not making any sense to you, am I?
This has nothing to do with Romney or Obama.
However, I would say that child marriages happen the most often in muslim households. What I can't understand is how the left can be so tolerant of muslims, but christians are automatically called bigoted against women's rights? You don't see the hypocrisy, do you?
Christians treat their daughters a lot better than you would give us credit for.
Even in third world countries, among christians, child marriages are not the norm.
All countries mentioned just happen to practice Islam.
Any why not, Muhammad was the original Muslim child molester.
Sahih
Muslim Book 008, Number 3310:
'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her)
reported: Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) married me when I was six
years old, and I was admitted to his house when I was nine years old.
@Unhappy-1583758
Christian treats their daughters better?
I bet you haven't been outside of US much. Even in Vietnam, you still hear of drowning a girl because they got pregnant before marriage and that happens with Christian family as well. There are also cases of exorcism that ended up killing those girls.
My mother got me when she was 15 years old and my family is a 3rd generations Christian. Most of her friends married off even younger than that.
Yes, in US, Christian is a little tame, but outside of US, not so much. Travel the world and see for yourself, plenty of killing from Christians throughout the world.
Like I said many times: Muslim lives in 13rd centuries and Christian lives in 16th centuries, both are equally outdated to the current society.
This practice is sickening. It is simply forced child sex under the pretense of marriage. Pedophiles, all of them...
I... don't care. If I cared about all the evil in the world I'd probably go insane. We have so much crap happening in our country right now. When the news allows it, you can hear about gang wars that end up with Drive Bys, children getting shot to death on the street, or playing on their front patio. Can we please stop focusing on crusading into other countries demanding they live like us already and focus on the killers in our country?
Women, Slaves, Minorities, they all fought for their rights. Our forefathers fought for their rights too. If they want change, let them fight for it. Let them be the heroes of their own nation. Are we afraid for them to have that pride? Do we just like running around acting like we're the great heroes of the world? We have no right to barge into these countries and demand they change their culture to be like ours. We don't even have basic rights for gays yet, and there's still racism, between Minorities AND Majorities.
Also, please notice that a lot of these girls actually RETURN HOME. To the same society that allowed this, to the same people that forced them into this. I don't see why this is even news. I don't see why I should care if they're going to throw themselves back into that world again instead of, oh, I don't know... MOVING!!!
There are MULTIPLE sites online, even a "Wiki" on marriage ages in the US. (usmarriagelaws)(marriageable age on wiki) (marriage about) are the first 3 pulled up on Google. A lot of States, especially here in South, will let a 14 year old girls marry, especially if she's pregnant or already a mother. Is it Mississippi that will let a 12 year old girl marry, but not a 12 year old boy? These laws are not for "Romeo and Juliet" scenarios, they were written for "Homer's married and buried 3 wives through childbirth and he should be able to still marry a purty young thang!" In the land of religious conservatives, the "right" of older men to marry young women or girls is damn near sacrosanct! You can bet, that here in the US, there are young girls and women pushed at older men in their church. And the old men (double her age, triple- which could be 24, 28, 36, 40, etc...) lap this up!
These perverts are the Taliban they are the so called religious police. Although we do have these types in America. Those so called off shoots of the LDS. I wonder how old Mitts grandfathers wives were when he married them ? Pretty young I'll bet since he had to hide to Mexico. But this was very common in the LDS until fairly resent times. And still happens with some sect's of LDS.
Actually they aren't LDS offshoots, they are the original mormons...the non polygamist mormons are the new age mormons....the offshoots.
When a girl is 10, it's not child marriage, it's child rape. If she is less than 18, you can make the argument, I suppose, if she's like 17. But at some point not very far from 18, it's just rape.
We are tolerant of Muslims because they condemn this barbaric practice as well. Ask any Muslim what he or she thinks of this. I did. Just because some countries have backwards people who are also Muslim doesn't mean that all Muslims are at fault. Just as all Christians are not at fault for what some terrorist Christian chooses to do.
This viewpoint is exactly what hypocrisy is not.
Given the news, in general, coming out of the Muslim world these past few days, we are seeing what might well be a gathering of female power in the Muslim world, with women standing up for their rights. Let's hope it is so. It behooves us in the West to provide whatever support we can, even if it is just moral support.
Alabama you can marry at age 14....
http://marriage.about.com/cs/teenmarriage/a/teenus.htm
How easy it is to bash other countries. And how easy it is to bash Muhammad for marrying according to the customs of the 6th century.
But bear in mind that it's fairly recently that state laws have raised ages of consent in the U.S. to the 16~18 range.
As recently as 1880, the age of consent was 7 in Delaware and 10 in most other states!
So call Muhammad a pedophile if you must, but be prepared to accept that, by the same standard, many of your not-so-distant ancestors were probably pedophiles too.
Hmm. I wonder how many of our revered Civil War heroes regularly copulated with preteens, and did so quite legally too.
With the Muslim take-over of Dearborn Michigan we will see this trend continue here. Look up Dearborn and Muslim on Youtube....Muslims stone people while the police watch. This country is going to Hell in a handbasket.
Or the mormon take over of Colorado City.
Adults marrying their 20th underage wife.
@CuongDNuguyen
Yet somehow Stephenie Sinclair did not report this. Could the actual problem be that Vietnam doesn't give a crap about women's rights and isn't Vietnam 85% Buddhist?
Looks a bit of a mudder...his other wife is a donkey ?
Marriage is the new name for pedophilia? How interesting. For all of those who defend marriage between male and female, this is one of the fathoms that is hard to confront. These are girl children married off to old men, to be raped, enslaved, impregnated, and discarded when finished with, provided the little girl doesn't die in child birth. What happens when she refuses? She is beaten, rejected, murdered, sold into more slavery, raped, and discarded again. Where does it ever end?
Be careful what you say. Some people in the US have no problem with girls/women being second or third class citizens, babymakers, barefoot and pregnant, under-employed, unemployed, underpaid, broke. Some people in the US would deny girls/women the right to prevent or end unwanted pregnancy -- even if it's due to rape and/or underage sex or incest.
We are not that far away from these abominable practices. Perhaps this article will be a wakeup call for those in denial. Pedophilia is a horror that should never be inflicted. Unfortunately, it's just one of many horrors we live with in this world.
Herre is a source that specifies age of concent in most countries. Note the exception is usually muslim countries or faiths.
Couldn't he have washed his pants for the wedding?
A riddle:
If a boy amd girl get married in Alabama at 14 then move to new york and get divorced are they still brother and sister?
What I've seen in the US that approximates it is women marrying or co-habitating with men who are more interested in one or more of their children than in them. I know of one who had been a prostitute and had a bunch of children, including a gorgeous 10 year old daughter. What man would want a woman who has a bunch of out of wedlock children who aren't his? That should have told her something. They moved in together. He went straight for her daughter. She let him, because he was feeding the other children and paying the rent. That is a scenario that pays out here daily. However, here it is illegal.
If these countries wanted to stop this practice then they should not conduct marriages between a man and a little child. Are these in fact sanctioned marriages?
As a female and a mother, I am outraged by this but I KNOW that we cannot go into other countries and dictate to them.
At the same time I am deeply angered that some of these same practices take place here in the U.S. There are communities where girls are brought up to be wives and mothers at a young age. They call it polygamy and claim it is done in the name of religion. There are also communities where the vast majority of residents are uneducated, are almost always single parents and dependent on government assistance, through out the U.S... The government could end this, but won't. If we don't cut off funding, it will never end... it will only get worse with every generation.
Take the case of the 13 year old boy who killed his 2 year old half brother and raped his 5 year old half brother. His mother was 12 when she got pregnant with him, since 12 is too young to be on your own, why is it legal for a 12 year old to raise a child? If that child had been taken away and adopted, do you think he would have grown into a teen who rapes and murders?
To Ol Doc, Romney doesn't belong to a religion that lets men marry children. You are referring to the Jeff's polygamist group that has no affiliation with the Church Romney belongs too. Please make correct statements that can be backed up with fact and truth.
I really wish that people would not generalize about the beliefs, customs and practices of any group of people when they have no idea of what they are talking about. The practice of marrying these very young girls off to older men does happen, but it is in the little villages where tribal customs are still followed and there is no education, technology, etc...If you go to the Muslim countries where women are encouraged to be educated, they are technologically advanced, the cities are modern, you do not see these things occuring. People here who cannot get past sterotypes and don't want to,are ignorant. ignorant. It is absurd to think that all Muslims ride around on camels, live in stone shacks, and women are covered head to toe. That is only in the backward undeveloped villages where they do things by their own laws. Saudi Arabia is a very wealthy country, but they do follow their own type of Sharia Law; other countries such as United Emirates and Egypt and Turkey have women very educated in the urban areas, and are are not married at young ages.
Mormons outlawed polygamy a long time ago. As far as marrying little girls, read this from the Huffington Post www.huffington post.com//2012/09/14/mormon-singles-lds-singles-wards-marriage_n_1875524.html
Just a few decades ago, the marriage age among Mormons was often as low as 18. Mormons still marry younger than most Americans, but most now marry in their early to mid-20s and singles in their 30s and 40s are quickly on the rise -- once unheard of.
Sickening and a debasement of society...And some say your childhood years are the best years of your life.
Guess the beards don't like beards.
You mean your childhood years are better in the US being the daughter of a "dance mom"?
It's an Allah thing. You wouldn't understand.
Mighty men of Allah prefer to wear beards, not see them in their bedroom.
It's something an infidel like yourself who prefers mature adults who have reached the age of majority wouldn't understand.
Oh but the liberals say we must accept these savage's customs and respect them.
@Bruce, it's not the liberal, but the conservative who are accepting these old values and savage customs.
Bruce,
What Liberal are you referring to?
You have a total misinterpretation of facts.
Bruce Durham Liberals want women emancipation, including abortion rights. You are an ignorant.
Bruce, guess again!!!!!!!
Bruce...I wish I could nail that guys dick to your forhead
YEAH........... SCREW THAT !!
What he means is we should go in there and bomb hell out of 'em
Bruce apparently lives in the Fox News bubble!
Sure Bruce...got anymore dishonest claims you wanna make?
It sure makes Sandra Fluke and her ilk look foolish and childish crying about a "war on women" here in the U.S. Instead of whining about getting taxpayers to pay for her birth control, maybe her time would be better spent helping the real causalities of a real war on women.
@RHONDA-1867478....wow..you show such intelligence...really propetic....
That's because the Satanic Versis of the quran allows sexual deviants to do this. When our government allowed this kind of fithy trash religion into come to our country, this is what you get. The perversion of the quran is absolutely unbelievable to the modern moral man.
Just Me-1251562 this happens because of cultural traditions rather than religious beliefs and mostly lack of education and poverty.
No, it's enshrined in Islam by the tradition of following Mohammed, who was betrothed to his favorite wife Aisha when she was 6 (he was in his 50s) and took her to the marriage bed age 9.
What isn't politically correct to note: India--mostly among Muslims, Nepal: mostly among Muslims, Ethiopia: mostly among Muslims. Naming the countries is to hide the fact this is mostly a Muslim situation.
Since NBC(MSNBC) has to have constant "sympathy for the Muslim" stories, when it comes to the really bad stuff with Islam, the "reporter" purposely left out any mention of Islam in the article.
"this happens because of cultural traditions rather than religious beliefs"
I think that for Islam, tradition and religion go hand in hand. Islam is really more of a theocracy for those who practice it by the book.
To JustMe-1251: Just me, What you say is Very True And! AND!! AND!!! Did You KNOW those facts of yours are RIGHT ON AND Did you know that these islamic perverted scum worship their "mohammed" Who forced a 6 year old little girl to "marry" him AND he then "consumated" the marraige when she turned 9. I Could Not Believe It at first but after researching it, turned out to be DISGUSTINGLY TRUE. These muslim/islamics are really demented SCUM and do not belong in our beautiful Country America; They should be "back home" camel humpin'. They are filthy disgusting Amoral slime.
Did I say All That!!!!!!!!! 1st Amen
right there with you Dennis Parker, MSNBC has a strict "dont offend the muslims" policy or hurt the feelings of middle eastern knucle draggers.
Um, heard of Warren Jeffs and the FDLS Church in Colorado City, AZ? This happens in the US also people. We too have areas of our country that are geographically hard to reach that allow perversions of society to exist.
Um, Carrie excuse-maker for Islam, IT'S ILLEGAL IN THE US. Heard of the fact that Warren Jeffs is in JAIL?
The problem with Islam as that it's legal by Sharia law as Mohammed did it!
JustMe,
Hate to burst your religious bubble but this happened in Medieval Christianity as well.
Geowil
Did you mean Catholicism or Christianity? They are not the same thing though they have similar roots. Luther cleaned up the Catholic church in more than one way back in the 1500's. Pedophilia was a problem then as it is now in the Catholic church. It is a problem because they cover it up and protect the offenders, not because this is nowhere else in society.
So India and Nepal are Muslim countries? And stop vomiting on this blog whatever you swallow on the "fair and balanced" news network.
Luther, your ignorance is showing. You might want to hike it up a bit and keep it hidden under your skirt.
Suze the Muze
Of course your fact filled comment really clarifies things. You must be Catholic.
JHB: India has the second largest Muslim population in the world, after Indonesia. Your ignorance is showing.
Actually Suze the Muze, Luther is correct. In the OLDEN Days it was not unusual to find old men and young girls getting "Married". Even today priests are accused every week it seems. We have child rapist now also.
Dave, unlike those talked about in the article, the ones you are speaking about here in this country face the reality that they will go to jail when caught. Comparing the acceptance of pedophilia in these primitive countries to the illegal pedophilia in this country is absurd.
Really??
There are tons of pedophiles in Colorado City not in jail.
there are alot alot of years between midevil times and now. most christian religions did evolve over time and they dont marry children. now you must remember that the life expectancy in midevil times was about 40 if you lived to be 50 you was OLD. Not nowadays. At least in this country we have laws against pedophilia. Cant say the same for the middle east. They might try evolving to this century they may even like it oppps that would be against sharia law and then they wouldnt get to rape little girls
Hard to believe that something like this happens in the hills of Virgina and the mountains of Afghanistan. It makes you wonder what other similarities there are.
The hills of Virginia do not have 11 year old brides. That's just a smear campaign to make it sound like it's not almost exclusively Muslim.
While it might be primarily a Muslim issue this happens in probably every country in the world. In the US in cults, religious sects that isolate themselves and keep their 'religious services" secret. I wont mention any by name so as not to politicize the conversation.
A smear campaign? Against who? Who's doing the smearing and why? do you remember the Mormon community a few years back that was busted for child marriages?
It happens in the US and Mormons aren't Muslims.
I posted before I read your response Anti. Should I not have mentioned the religious sects? :)
As a mother of a teenager I wonder how we can go on with our daily lives sometimes knowing this is going on somewhere in the world. This is a sickening and despicable tradition! We all just heard of the 14 year old girl this week that got shot by the taliban for saying she wanted to get an education! I think its the men in those cultures that need the education!!! They need to learn to be human!!!
It might not solely a Muslim problem and might be present in cults in the US but it's ILLEGAL in the US and the government raids and prosecutes cults that abuse kids. Hence: Warren Jeffs is in jail but all those Muslims are taking more wives.
@No Alias
You just posted what I was thinking, I just didn't want to open that can and watch the topic derailed. Too late now and reading further many others did, so we'll add Warren Jeffs, David Koresh, Paul Schäfer, Pete Moses, Albert Tony Walker, Sai Baba, amongst many others, just google it, and of course Catholic Priests who don't marry, they just date.
Rachel, I feel I must concede to your point of illegality. I only have an issue with labelling an entire population. There is so much hate involved in these accusations and these cases don't actually represent the whole of a population. I always steer clear of generalizations, plus I don't know how pragmatic most newsvine commenter's actually are. I would gladly declare that the issue of child marriage is predominately a Muslim issue but I don't hate all Muslims based on that precedent. I can also separate the emotional reaction caused by these stories from the larger population of Muslims. I hope the rest of us can do that too. Sure let's call a duck a duck but let's not generalize or be hateful or ignorant.
Marrying young children is a Muslim custom/tradition. The Mormon thing is completely different. They marry teenage girls, not little girls like these islamic scum! What kind of a father would do this to their daughter you have to wonder. But, perhaps this will make some of the idiots that feel we should allow their laws and traditions here in the United States, even when they break OUR laws, think again!
Paul; Exhibit A.
Paul
So 11&12 year olds are off limits but 13&14 year olds are ok?
Yeah that's so much better.
Oh Paul you don't have a vote, I accidentally clicked my mouse, I was going for the reply button so minus 1 vote!!!!!!!!!!!!
Just thought I would throw it out there for the misinformed that Warren Jeffs (the FLDS organization) and that whole disgusting situation in that compound are not related to the LDS church (Mormons) in the least. Mormons are extremely opposed to premarital sex or marriage (especially underage).
What is wrong with an age appropriate WOMAN!
> eboniteprince
> What is wrong with an age appropriate WOMAN!
Women no longer want to be women. Women are trying to be more like men every day. Heck, many women now date women too! Let's see .. go to college, get a job, buy a house, build a complete life .. THEN try to find a man to fit into it. That's a difficult scenario to make work, as illustrated by the high divorce rate.
I really dont think it is right to make anybody marry anybody that they dont want to marry religious laws or not . its insane. marriage is hard enough. add being in it when you dont want to be it is intolerable. To marry a child or someone against thier will is just wrong, period.
George
maybe women dont want a man like you to marry. You sir are an inappropriate man. age appropriate or not.
try to find a man who wants to marry a woman that does not work and does not have some kind of life. you wont men are not stupid and the days of men taking care of women have been over for a long long time. catch up. join the rest of us in the real world.
I posted this in wrong thread, the one following this one:
Antistupidity, a 13-14 year old may have started having her period, may have breasts, may be large enough not to be torn by intercourse. A 8 or 9 or 10 yr old isn't.
Certainly in certain populations in this country children of 13 and 14 are fairly routinely giving birth, out of wedlock, and raising them on welfare--but nobody's forcing the girls (yes some are forced but many are sleeping with boys the same age or just a tad older. So we can say that SUPPORTING WELFARE is supporting child "marriage" if by marriage you mean sex.
Regardless whether this happens in Afghanistan or elsewhere...it is sickening and morally debases all females. This is pure and simple child pornography being disguised as a "marriage".
IT IS RAPE !!!!!!!!!
Only if it happens in America. In those countries it is not defined that way. Not that I stand behind the practice at all, just being realistic about the issue.
Antistupidity, a 13-14 year old may have started having her period, may have breasts, may be large enough not to be torn by intercourse. A 8 or 9 or 10 yr old isn't.
Certainly in certain populations in this country children of 13 and 14 are fairly routinely giving birth, out of wedlock, and raising them on welfare--but nobody's forcing the girls (yes some are forced but many are sleeping with boys the same age or just a tad older. So we can say that SUPPORTING WELFARE is supporting child "marriage" if by marriage you mean sex.
Tony and Lilirocks, that's nothing but obama speak. You say a bunch of nothing in hopes of convincing simpled minded people that what comes out of your mouth is truth when the facts are in your face. Put on your turbans and hit the road. The US can do with out people like you.
Just couldn't resist could you. Regardless of political bent, politics has nothing to do with the debasement of those young girls.
Allowing that s**t here does to have to do with it!
THESE PEOPLE are Animals! He looks like he's at least 60 years not 40?!?!
IMHO, these men who take children as "brides" are just a bunch of pedophiles.
Susie, no need for "IMHO" here. Rather, your statement is an absolute fact and does not need to be watered down in any fashion by injecting that it's a humble opinion. Stand and be counted against these legalized felons. It's the only way the laws can be changed and used to prosecute them.
Susie Cue and Do justice: Those demented individuals are NOT Men. WE MEN DO NOT do such Horrendous things to Females; We Repect, Love and Protect Females as We Were Birthed by a Woman.
The issue is that it is THEIR culture, not ours. so unless you want your children to go there a kill them for marriage to little girls, STFU. So many people cry about this but do nothing about it. Pack your bags, buy a ticket and head on over and convert these pedophiles, otherwise, STFU.
Here in the U.S.?? 8 years old?? Are you sure about that?
Probably not legally, but I'm sure it happens. Warren Jeffs was caught and convicted.
(And he wasn't a Muslim.)
Muslim men are sick, disgusting, pedophiles. Does the Koran say pedophilia is holy?
Exodus 21:7 "When a man sells his daughter as a slave, she will not be freed at the end of six years as the men are. If she does not please the man who bought her, he may allow her to be bought back again."
There is crazy pedophile crap in all religions because that's how they did it back then. But that was then and this is now.
You'd think that if they really thought sex was for making babies, they wouldn't be having sex with prepubecent children. Also, having sex with them that early could prevent them from having babies later on. There's no point to it other than some sicko's satisfaction. Just gross!
It's not just muslims... lots of religions think it's ok. Several religions here in the USA think its ok they just down play it because it's illegal...
Meanwhile in America, Catholic priests are protected for raping little boys. So you can't blame Muslims for everything, John.
Risha, maybe you could back your BS up with some facts. What other religions think it's OK here in the US?
Mormonism
John 330- Those humen effluence ARE NOT MEN. WE MEN DO NOT DO Such Abominated deeds to Females; it is allowed in that @!$%#ria law..............
What, this dude couldn't even put on clean ass-britches to get married ?? Looks like a great provider; I wouldn't even shake his clean hand.
Bruce, I agree! The libs (O-blah-blah-blah-ma and his admin) have opened the borders, and the damn radical societies, cultures, religions---whatever NAME you put to it doesn't matter---are doing this HERE in good ol' AMERICA! This is allowed to happen here in our own country!! And then we are told they are to be respected and obliged. It's child ABUSE at it's worst. Now, if YOU wanted to marry a 7- or 8-yr old CHILD, and call it part of your upbringing, or culture, or religion, again--doesn't matter what name you call it--you'd be in jail so flippin' fast your head would still be spinning. I'm proud of Ms. Sinclair for giving a voice to these babies, and that's exactly what they are: babies!! I'm proud of MRS. Nujood Ali, who at TEN got the courage to leave her husband. OMG.. just typing that a ten-yr-old has been married and divorced is absolutely horrid to me. These babies need a voice, and the libs aren't gonna give it to them---they'll just 'accept it and turn their heads' because it's their "culture". Makes me wanna vomit........
Are you 4real? I mean seriously...you're saying that Liberals would be the one's to turn their heads to child rape?
This is not a political or religious issue...this is a human issue. Address it like a human with common sense.
Here's an answer that's easy. Like the Taliban, and their iron fist rule, begin to behead ANY parent who sells or marries any child into a marriage before their 18th birthday. If your issue is that you need money to feed the other children, then stop having children. No child should be married to an adult EVER... But these rules and customs are centuries old, written by pedophile for the benefit of pedophiles... sick bastards..
Lisa, shut the hell up about liberals turning away from atrocities directed at children. Keep your biased hate-filled junk to yourself.
I'd say the biggest radical religious affiliation in the U.S. right now is the right-wing Christian fundamentalists who want to legislate their interpretation of the Bible to impose their beliefs on everyone. This is in fact the same view the Taliban holds, only for a different holy book. Are you going to blame the liberals for allowing the right-wing Christians in?
Lisa -- selling young girls has absolutely NOTHING to do with Obama or being a liberal. Or the price of tea in China. It's a humanity issue. Instead of hiding behind your computer to spew hate, why don't you click through the links and find a way to be constructive and help these young people?
....and what about the LDS church membes here in the US. They do it...they merry children all the time.
I'm not LDS but I do know for a fact that the LDS church doesnt condone this type of thing, its the FLDS led by warren jeffs and a few other radical offshoots of the FLDS that practice this and they are no better than the muslim scum that think its ok to marry a child
I want married to Amerika mens! Any won like hairy girl from Iran?
wow the terrorist guy in the picture couldnt find a clean pair of pants to wear for his wedding photo?
Dear Dopes of America - and there are a lot of you - Parental consent at sixteen in the US means when a 16 year old girl wants to get married to, for instance, her 18 year old boyfriend. it is not legal in this country to sell children into slavery.
The founder of Islam wed a 7-year-old girl, consummated the marriage at 9. Also had 11 other wives, 3 at one time. Whatever you do, never disrespect this creep.
Sick bastards
Islam is a sick cult invented by a warlord who needed a motivated army to capture Medina and Mecca 1500 years ago. It's that simple folks.
well that may be but they quickly figured out it was a great way to enslave their women and control their young impressionable lil jihodders...Allah said what?
A tribal culture of nomadic herdsmen/bandits whose envy of more successful societies led to development of a religion that justified their predations.
Oh, it just makes me sick to KNOW what these girls have to endure at such a young tender age.
I myself a victim of rape at 8 yrs old, I know firsthand the pain, emotional derailment and physical/emotional scars that follow.
How governments can justify that is completely beyond me.
Because the govenments don't care. Women are for pleasure and labor. At least for these cultures. The only difference is in the USA and other more civilized cultures we realized how immoral it was so we made it illegal. They consider pedophilism NORMAL.
This is "traditional marriage" according to the Bible.
Remember, the virgin Mary was no more than 12 or 13 at the time of her marriage to Joseph.
Once again proving the bible is not divine.
There's nothing in the Bible that says Mary was 12 or 13. And since it doesn't say that she was, you just made up "12 or 13", lol, couldn't give a specific number.
This is one of those...well in Middle East cultures at the time (like now)...kids marrying very young was common...therefore we assume Mary was...
No evidence.
The average age of puberty in the 19th century for females was 15, so who actually knows what the age of marriage was in biblical times, plus marriage records were not kept. But if you look at the early art images of the Madonna she clearly looks like a woman.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Catherine%27s_Monastery,_Mount_Sinai
I would also assume that most families would want mother and child to survive delivery since there are many medical complications related to adolescent pregnancies. And what about nursing the child, I don't think little breast buds would be sufficient.
disturbing to say the least. those folks think we're screwed up...but at least we don't advocate and sanction child molestation.
God help the stinky old perv who shows interest in my daughter! What is WRONG with people?
Pedophiles and rapists hiding behind marriage!
This is nothing more than allowing men to be in power and control over women by allowing them to molest and rape a child younger than 14. Moreover, how many of them are verbally and physically abused if they protest or cry? Societies such as this are backward due to their primitive religions, Islam included, and tribal rites.
You couldn't be more right.
Then why do you suppose so many are encouraging the right for their religion to practice this kind of sinful behavior here? Remember all the comments on these boards regarding freedom of religion. The nut jobs don't even know this is one of the things they are advocating for.
Why don't you nitwits keep your noses out of other peoples' countries and cultures. Worry about fixing up America instead. And desemitize the place while you're at it. Cultural semitism has become this country's curse.