Activist Art: They Will Become
Completed August 2010.
17"x14"; pen&ink on watercolor paper.
Too often, the phrase "think of the children" is invoked to advance their desire to restrict the freedom of other people. It is noxious because it frames anyone who objects to be anti-child, whether or not their original linking between the issue and child welfare is even correct or relevant. It is used as a cover for denying people information, choice, and control of their own destinies, and a way to avoid the question of what happens to these children once they're grown, or even born!
Once a woman is forced to bear a child she can't take care of or doesn't want, then what of the child once it's born? If the child is female, how can you fight for her to be born at the expense of her right to control her body once she's grown?
Once children are denied accurate sex education, what of these same young adults once they acquire the power of human sexuality without the knowledge to wield it responsibly?
Once children with disabilities have grown out of their "sleeping angel" photo ops, what are their resources, where are their advocates then?
Don't use children as your excuse, your cover story, your trophy with which to parade your agenda. Children. Are. People. How you treat them now will affect them once they're grown, and they are neither more nor less deserving of your respect than adults.
Read my blog post about this piece.
Original is for sale. Contact the artist for more information.
17"x14"; pen&ink on watercolor paper.
Too often, the phrase "think of the children" is invoked to advance their desire to restrict the freedom of other people. It is noxious because it frames anyone who objects to be anti-child, whether or not their original linking between the issue and child welfare is even correct or relevant. It is used as a cover for denying people information, choice, and control of their own destinies, and a way to avoid the question of what happens to these children once they're grown, or even born!
Once a woman is forced to bear a child she can't take care of or doesn't want, then what of the child once it's born? If the child is female, how can you fight for her to be born at the expense of her right to control her body once she's grown?
Once children are denied accurate sex education, what of these same young adults once they acquire the power of human sexuality without the knowledge to wield it responsibly?
Once children with disabilities have grown out of their "sleeping angel" photo ops, what are their resources, where are their advocates then?
Don't use children as your excuse, your cover story, your trophy with which to parade your agenda. Children. Are. People. How you treat them now will affect them once they're grown, and they are neither more nor less deserving of your respect than adults.
Read my blog post about this piece.
Original is for sale. Contact the artist for more information.