Child Brides - Jezebel

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Babies Having Babies
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"Australian Fritzl" Makes Headlines After 30 Years Of Abuse • Man Wins Ladies' Poker Tournament
12-Year-Old Child Bride Dies In Labor
After Divorce, Life Is Still Bleak For Former Child Bride
Recycle Old Sex Toys Into Snack Sorters • Study: Divorce Is Bad For Health
Baby Girls On The Black Market
Have Polygamists Had A Change Of Heart On Underage Marriage?
Judge Refuses To Divorce 8-Year-Old Girl, Sparks International Debate
Russians Use Obama, Stupidity To Sell Ice Cream • Black Girls More Likely To Suffer From Bulimia

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ArtfulSlinger
11/04/09

In reply to Babies Having Babies
This Halloween, I had one set of trick or treaters. They were all under the age of 13. There were two girls and what I believe was their younger brother, about 9. The eldest, 13 at the most, was pushing HER baby in a stroller trick or treating. She asked for pretzels over the candy I had, to keep the baby weight off. I broke inside. #kidstoday
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The Queen of No
11/04/09

In reply to Babies Having Babies
I didn't even know what the mechanics of sex were when I was 11. How terrifying. #kidstoday
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BetteD
11/04/09

@The Queen of No: At 11, I didn't know what a penis looked like, nor did I have any interest at all. Fuck. #kidstoday
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lafleur
11/04/09

In reply to Babies Having Babies
Whether or not we agree with her choices, her "boyfriend" is actually her boyfriend, sans quotation marks.

ETA: And er... this situation is gross.
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Edited by lafleur at 11/04/09 12:17 PM lafleur was starred lafleur was unstarred

fauxfruit
11/04/09

@lafleur: I think they used quotation marks because he's also her rapist. #kidstoday
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Blitzgal
11/04/09

@lafleur: Except even according to the law in that country, she was not old enough to legally give consent. As far as the law was concerned she is not able to make that choice, period. And him "not knowing" how old she actually was is not a legal defense.

I couldn't see in the article -- are they dropping the charges against him because the two are now married? #kidstoday
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Atomic Bowling
11/04/09

@Blitzgal: As far as the law is concerned, she's not allowed to choose to have sex with him (or anyone). That doesn't mean she can't decide who she is going to call her boyfriend (as creepy as it may be).

As for the charges, I would assume that they won't be affected by the marriage, since it doesn't seem like the marriage is recognizable by Bulgarian law (with consent of parents the minimum age of marriage is 16). It seems like the marriage is recognized by the Roma community, but they aren't the ones responsible for prosecuting him for what he did. #kidstoday
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lafleur
11/04/09

@Atomic Bowling: "That doesn't mean she can't decide who she is going to call her boyfriend (as creepy as it may be)."

Right. That's what I meant-- not that I sanction their marriage or sexual relationship by any means. #kidstoday
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wineoceros
11/04/09

In reply to Babies Having Babies
Please, stop bursting my bubble, Jezebel.

I prefer to believe that 11-year old girls today are like we were: wearing overalls, climbing trees, and spending the lunch hour taking turns telling spooky strories and playing soccer. #kidstoday
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LindsayC: doctoral hilarity ensues
11/04/09

@wineoceros: *sigh* Yep. The most mature thing I did at 11 was to say the word "shit" while walking with friends to 7-11 to buy Slurpees. #kidstoday
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Katxyz
11/04/09

@wineoceros:

This isn't the norm. A singular case doesn't reflect a trend.

I don't know how old you are, but I know that the 11 and 12 year-olds were having babies then too. #kidstoday
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whynotshesaid
11/04/09

@Katxyz: I went to junior high school with a couple of girls who had babies, but by far most of us were either like she said, or we were trying to figure out how to imitate teenage girls.

The girls who were having babies at the age of 12 are not even close to the norm, either. #kidstoday
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Cerridwen
11/04/09

In reply to Babies Having Babies
"It feels strange...now I must grow up. I am not going back to school."

Something tells me life is not going to turn out as this little girl has planned. #kidstoday
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MerryLilly
11/04/09

In reply to Babies Having Babies
On one side, life expectancy keeps increasing. On the other, the age at which kids have children keeps decreasing.

That doesn't compute. I'm cofuzzed. #kidstoday
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Atomic Bowling
11/04/09

@MerryLilly: It seems to me that it's just a sign of the window of fertility widening, which does make some sense in the context of longer lifespans. There was something on Science Friday a week or two ago that involved the guy explaining that giving birth younger tends to be associated with reproductive success (which I guess makes sense, the younger you are when you start the more kids you are able to end up having). Maybe this has something to do with why, as nutrition and health care and other factors lead to younger people going through puberty and more women surviving childbirth, we are seeing more very young mothers than in the recent past? #kidstoday
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Ariadne27
11/04/09

@Atomic Bowling: I don't think the window of fertility widens, I think you go through menopause sooner. I wish I had an article to quote but I'm certain I've read this. #kidstoday
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MerryLilly
11/04/09

@Atomic Bowling: Good analysis, very interesting. But fertility seems to be widening on both ends, as in, it's also a bit easier to have kids at an older age. I would assume more people would wait, to better prepare themselves to be parents, be more established financially (after all, raising a kid is more expensive than it used to be). Complicated subject. #kidstoday
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R-U-Kidn-Me
11/04/09

@MerryLilly: Im confused. Just because you live longer, you should wait to have kids? #kidstoday
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MerryLilly
11/04/09

@R-U-Kidn-Me: I wouldn't put it that way.

What I was trying to say is that, when life expectancy was around 40 years old, it would make sense to have kids around 14 or so. But nowadays, I just have a hard time understanding people having kids at 11 (like this case).

To clarify further, I was basically talking about kids having kids. I don't have a problem if adults want to wait or not.
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Edited by MerryLilly at 11/04/09 3:16 PM MerryLilly was starred MerryLilly was unstarred

MerryLilly
11/04/09

@Ariadne27: I would like to read that article if you find it. It sounds interesting. #kidstoday
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Ariadne27
11/04/09

@MerryLilly: I wish I had it too! It wasn't recent, so no clue. But if you think about it this way it would make sense: It's not like people who go through puberty earlier have more eggs. I'm pretty sure you release an egg each month, so if you start earlier, then you'll run out earlier and go through menopause earlier. #kidstoday
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MerryLilly
11/04/09

@Ariadne27: Yeah, it does make sense. Thanks for replying! #kidstoday
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gold_gato
11/04/09

In reply to Babies Having Babies
Her quote is a glimpse into the future; shield my eyes, life. #kidstoday
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keldo
11/04/09

In reply to Babies Having Babies
Where is the silver lining here? Umm...they can both ride the bus to school together soon?
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Edited by keldo at 11/04/09 11:36 AM keldo was starred keldo was unstarred

morninggloria
11/04/09

In reply to Babies Having Babies
(thanks Science that I didn't even have my period until I was 16, hopes future theoretical daughter is similarly blessed with a prolonged biological childhood) #kidstoday
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JessickerFletcher
11/04/09

In reply to Babies Having Babies
My 11 year-old self: "I'll stick with my Legos, thanks!" #kidstoday
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SUNNY1
11/04/09

In reply to Babies Having Babies
Something tells me it's not quite the same as a Cabbage Patch doll. Couldn't tell you why, but I got a feeling about this one... #kidstoday
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nyc-caribbean-ragazza
11/04/09

In reply to Babies Having Babies
I know women and girls don't have a lot of rights in Roma culture but how is this 19 year old not in jail? #kidstoday
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Oryx Hearts Crake
11/04/09

@nyc-caribbean-ragazza: I travelled to Bulgaria this past summer and never felt safe anyplace. Its a pretty lawless country and the Roma operate almost entirely outside of the law.In the U.S. the Roma are commonly referred to as "Gypsies" (derived from Egyptian although they really originated in India) and in my home country of England they're called "Travellers".Interesting fact: Charlie Chaplin, Michael Caine and Tracey Ullman are all of Traveller (Gypsy) descent.
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nyc-caribbean-ragazza promoted this comment Edited by Oryx Hearts Crake at 11/04/09 11:37 AM Oryx Hearts Crake was starred

pantsless economist...access RESTORED
11/04/09

@nyc-caribbean-ragazza: I don't know--the article said he WAS facing 6 years in jail for sex with a minor. Maybe because they got married, he isn't now? The article didn't explain it very well. #kidstoday
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nyc-caribbean-ragazza
11/04/09

@pantsless economist...access RESTORED:

I was confused by that as well. Or maybe he's going to jail later?

Meanwhile her family is like okay, we'll have a big three day wedding.

Poor kid. #kidstoday
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That-Dude
11/04/09

@nyc-caribbean-ragazza: read the article -- he's facing 6 years, but has the right to due process. #kidstoday
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EkaterinaBallerina
11/04/09

@Oryx Hearts Crake: Clarify something for me? I thought "Travellers" were Irish Gypsies and of no relation to the Roma. Just curious because that's how I'd always heard it. Am I wrong? #kidstoday
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nyc-caribbean-ragazza
11/04/09

@Oryx Hearts Crake:

Here in Italy the debate regarding the rights of the Roma to live the way they want verses abiding by the law (i.e. children need to be in school and not begging during the middle of the day) is very controversial.

Plus many confused the Roma with Romanians. They are not one and the same. Romanians have to deal with a lot of prejudice in Europe.

I have read about the Traveller culture in America and it's fascinating. It's why I asked the original question. Maybe to her family a 19 year old being with a sixth grader is okay regardless what the laws of the country say. #kidstoday
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nyc-caribbean-ragazza
11/04/09

@That-Dude:

Okay I misread. I thought the trial happened already. #kidstoday
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kemperboyd
11/04/09

@Oryx Hearts Crake: Actually you are incorrect. They are caled Romany Gypsys if they are Roma, or Irish travellers if they are of that background. There are different ethnic groups who are travellers. #kidstoday
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Oryx Hearts Crake
11/04/09

@kemperboyd: @EkaterinaBallerina:

I think we are all partly correct: There are both "Irish Travellers" and "English Travellers" who are completely different ethnic groups.

The Irish Travellers speak their own language derived from Irish Gaelic and are Irishmen who were thrown off their land in the early middle ages. There are Irish Travellers in both Ireland and England.

But England has a separate group called "English Travellers who are descended from the Roma (or Gypsies) who came from France. Charlie Chaplin, Tracey Ullman and Michael Caine are all descended from English Travellers. English Travellers are what we commonly refer to as Gypsies. Where I grew up in Salisbury they lived outside town in caravans and spoke Roma and worked as fortune tellers and odd jobs.

Here is the official Wikipedia entry:

the term "English Travellers" refers to groups of gypsies, and may mean: Romanichals, or English Gypsies orIrish Traveller, living in the United Kingdom.
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Edited by Oryx Hearts Crake at 11/04/09 12:48 PM Oryx Hearts Crake was starred

gherkinfiend
11/04/09

@Oryx Hearts Crake: Travellers are usually Irish in origin rather than Roma. They are usually regarded as a different group to Roma (or gypsies) both by others and themselves.

The recent vile anti-Roma violence in Northern Ireland particularly highlighted the difference between the two groups. #kidstoday
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Aesop's Foibles. YES.
11/04/09

In reply to Babies Having Babies
That story has made me die a little. I don't even know where to start. I guess one good thing, maybe, is that the little girl will have help? Because she's only eleven and all. And it sounded like she's got some family. Oh my God my bile is rising, excuse me. #kidstoday
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History Major
11/04/09

In reply to Babies Having Babies
Calm down History Major. You must be tolerant of the way cultures around the world vary from your own.

Whew that was easy. Comment crisis averted. #kidstoday
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Sophie needs to study...damn
11/04/09

In reply to Babies Having Babies
"I was walking past the school when I saw some boys mocking her and I told them to leave her alone," said the baby's 19 year-old dad Jeliazko. "Then she arranged to meet me and asked me out on our first date.

This 11 yr. old has some moxie. #kidstoday
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Understater
11/04/09

@Sophie needs to study...damn: Somewhere Diablo Cody is snickering wickedly. #kidstoday
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