The cishetero nuclear family pushes this idea that the biological parent is the only person who has a “say” in a child’s life. And this is why folks will see a child get beat in public and say/do nothing. This is why people continuously excuse and look away from child abuse.

Whenever it comes to pushing back against abuse, know that there will be a “biological” parent claiming ownership over their child.

Children are the one/most vulnerable beings and I wish more and more adults would intervene when they witness things. Children need a wide range of support networks and one persons parenting will always be limited to their own perspective/worldview for good or bad

It’s always “it takes a village to raise a child” until it’s time to push back on one’s ownership of one’s child.

If you have young people in your life, please intervene given whatever capacity you have to do so. We need more people taking collective responsibility for the children that are being raised in this violent world and I will die on this hill.

So much of your life is shaped by your childhood and all the childhood trauma you’ve endured. So much childhood abuse and trauma that adults witness and did nothing. Please intervene. Please say something. Please pushback even when it feels weird/uncomfortable/not your “place”.

Children are vulnerable to so much violence. So much normalized violence. They have no rights or agency. What would 5, 10, 15 year old you have needed? What types of supports would you have wanted? What types of adults would you have needed to seek or consult?

Sometimes parents “don’t know best”. Sometimes their best is what they’ve learned and been socialized into and the reproduction and projection of their trauma onto their kids.

Also this idea that you need to be a “parent” to support a young person or pushback against harm and abuse is just another way to evade community accountability, conceal abuse and evade all of our roles in raising up a generation

I also just strongly believe in intergenerational relationship and it’s not a good thing for children/ young people to have an averse or negative perception of adults/elders.