General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: PARENTS are responsible for the safety of their children. [View all]Coventina
(27,121 posts)Which is why fighting for social justice and a stronger social safety net has ALWAYS been one of my top priorities in life.
And, believe me, I AM sorry that the grandmother in your case faced criminal charges, because from what you describe, all reasonable precautions had been taken and she did nothing "wrong", she just had more than she could handle at once. That is a world of difference, to me, than actively taking 4 preschoolers alone, into a public environment that was totally uncontrolled.
Criminal charges should only be applied when there has been reckless disregard for the child's safety, and that certainly was not the case in your story. And, it may not even be true of the gorilla case, I'm happy to leave that up to law enforcement. As I stated before, what infuriates me is that the mother's lack of judgment in that case resulted in the painful death of another creature.
I also have to say, in the spirit of full disclosure, that I was raised by a neglectful mother, and so as the oldest sibling I became responsible for my younger siblings at a very young age (6) and this probably also colors my perceptions a bit.