Child Bride: Home

Most in the United States likely associate the concept of the child bride with the mores and practices of the distant past. But Nicholas L. Syrett challenges this assumption in his sweeping and sometimes shocking history of youthful marriage in America. Focusing on young women and girls--the most common underage spouses--Syrett tracks the marital history of American minors from the colonial period to the present, chronicling the debates and moral panics related to these unions. Although the frequency of child marriages has declined since the early twentieth century, Syrett reveals that the practice was historically far more widespread in the United States than is commonly thought. It also continues to this day: current estimates indicate that 9 percent of living American women were married before turning eighteen. By examining the legal and social forces that have worked to curtail early marriage in America--including the efforts of women's rights activists, advocates for children's rights, and social workers--Syrett sheds new light on the American public's perceptions of young people marrying and the ways that individuals and communities challenged the complex legalities and cultural norms brought to the fore when underage citizens, by choice or coercion, became husband and wife.

The Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.tandfebooks.com/doi/view/10.4324/9781315180250, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license Adolescence is a pivotal time in a girl's life. The development of educational, physical, psychosocial, familial, political and economic capabilities enable girls to reach their full potential and contribute to the wellbeing of their families and society. However, progress is still significantly constrained by discriminatory gender norms and the related attitudes and practices which restrict girls' horizons, restrain their ambition and, if unfettered, allow exploitation and abuse. Empowering Adolescent Girls in Developing Countries explores the detrimental impact of discriminatory gender norms on adolescent girls' lives across very different contexts. Grounded in four years of in-depth research in Ethiopia, Nepal, Uganda and Viet Nam, the book adopts a holistic approach, recognising the inter-related nature of capabilities and the importance of local context. By exploring the theory of gendered norm change, contextualising and examining socialisation processes, the book identifies the patriarchal vested interests in power, authority and moral privilege, which combine in attempts to restrict and control girls' lives. Throughout the book, Empowering Adolescent Girls in Developing Countries demonstrates how efforts to develop more egalitarian gender norms can enable disadvantaged adolescent girls to change the course of their lives and contribute to societal change. Accessible and informative, the book is perfect for policy makers, think tanks, NGOs, activists, academics and students of gender and development studies.　

Despite international human rights decrees condemning it, marriage by force persists to this day. In this volume, the editors bring together legal scholars, anthropologists, historians, and development workers to explore the range of forced marriage practices in sub-Saharan Africa.

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The true story of one girl who said'no'to tradition, and the effect it had upon a nationIn a remote village in Bengal, 11-year-old Rekha and her large family lived by rolling handmade cigarettes. She frequently observed the abrupt departure of her friends to go live with their mothers-in-law, where they were often treated like slaves. In spite of her youth, Rekha was aware of the harm done to these little girls. When, in their turn, her parents found a husband for her, a man she didn't know, she flew into a blinding rage at the idea of being taken away from any further schooling for good. After that, Rekha went from village to village to tell her story, and especially to explain the tragic consequences of early marriages. Thanks to her, several dozen children found the courage to say no to this tribal tradition. Her story gained national attention with India's newspaper hailing her for accomplishing change that the India government was incapable of making. Her exemplary journey gained her the recognition of the highest courts in the land, she has had an audience with the Indian President, and she is a recipient of India's National Bravery Award. Written with the collaboration of Mouhssine Ennaimi, a distinguished reporter for Radio France, The Strength to Say No, translated from Ennaimi's acclaimed French edition, is a documentary portrait of one girl's monumental struggle." Description from eBook Collection (EBSCOhost)