Your children are safe and tucked up, by you, in pyjamas you chose, in beds you bought, in your house, after a family dinner you decided they should have… they’re YOURS, aren't they? You choose their type of education, what they eat, their clothes, their doctors; you approve their extracurricular activities, their toys, their outings. I mean, they’re YOUR children!
As long as you abide by a few certain government mandates and world conventions, you’re allowed to keep them. And as long as you don’t oppose certain medical treatment, you’re allowed to house them. As long as you live in an acceptably normal, state-approved lifestyle, you’re allowed to continue to care for them. As long as your religion aligns with the acceptable dogma of your government, you’re allowed to raise them.
But don’t be a fool and think you own them.
Image Credit Boiling Frogs Post
"Your child belongs to us already... what are you?" - Adolf Hitler
Those snuggly little bundles of terror that deprive you of an accumulated 5-10 total years’ worth of sleep over your lifetime, those little bodies you’ve protected made up of half your genes, and half your partner’s, those engaged minds that you’ve nurtured, the blood, sweat, tears and a heck of a lot of money you’ve poured into raising these fidgety gremlins… well, the state thanks you. You may continue to do this if you behave.
In fact, the state is quite good at letting you keep your children. Most parents don’t even realise their children don’t belong to them unless they make a feau pax. The problem is, there is no list of taboo parenting choices. It is simply up to as little as one social worker or doctor who disagrees with your style.
Image Credit Daily Mail
A 10 month old Charlie Gard has been imprisoned in London’s Great Ormond Street Hospital. He has a rare and debilitating mitochondrial depletion disease and is being kept on life support, and there is nothing more the hospital can do for him. He has lost movement in limbs and needs an artificial respirator, and his brain function has decreased this year.
His parents, Connie and Chris, are not giving up though, and have raised over $1.78 million to take him to the U.S. for experimental therapy, an oral medication called deoxynucleoside therapy which is thought to perhaps be able to improve his condition (it has seen dramatic improvement in mice and humans with similar (but not the same) conditions).
But the hospital disagreed with this parental decision and went to High Court, which ruled in favour of not letting Charlie out and travelling to the U.S. because the hospital, in their God-like, all knowing state, deduced that Charlie’s “best interests” involved them keeping him on the premises, removing his respirator and making him “die with dignity”. The parents appealed to the Supreme Court, which also ruled the hospital can imprison Charlie and remove his respirator because the experimental procedure had no chance of success. The parents appealed to the European Convention on Human Rights and the Supreme Court ruled to keep Charlie alive until the ECHR decided whether they had the authority to take on this case.
AUTHORITY? WHY IS THIS EVEN A QUESTION? The only people with the authority to make this decision should be Charlie’s PARENTS, Chris and Connie. But that is no longer the case.
The Supreme Court cited the ‘Children Act of 1989’ which says that the welfare of the child shall be the paramount consideration in any question concerning the upbringing of the child in any proceedings.
This provision reflects Article 3.1 of the ‘United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child’, which says that in any official action concerning the child, the child's best interests shall be a primary consideration.
Furthermore, where there is a significant dispute about a child's best interests the child himself must have an independent voice in that dispute. It cannot be left to the parents alone. So Charlie was given an unknown ‘guardian’, who ‘spoke up’ for Charlie and said he should die. I’m sure Charlie thanks him.
‘The child’s best interests’ sounds lovely. Who wouldn’t want that? But underlying this phrase is the assumption that the parents are not qualified to parent the way they feel benefits the child’s best interests. Once in court, if the judge or ‘guardian’ has a different definition of ‘best’ then parents don’t get a look in.
If you live in one of the green or purple areas below, your country has signed its compliance with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. If you live in a green country, your country has ratified this convention so is bound to it by international law. Compliance is monitored by the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, which is composed of members from countries around the world.
Image Credit Wikipedia
The U.S. has not ratified since it signed in 1995 due to opposition by conservatives arguing it removes moral authority and threatens homeschooling. However, the U.S. government has been involved with many medical kidnaps, so not ratifying this convention is not protecting citizens against anything, it just protects the government from international law.
In light of worldwide protest over Charlie Gard’s death sentence, the hospital changed its tune. They realised they weren’t God when doctors around the world contacted them and told them the treatment has real promise. Which of course just shows parents bloody do know best.
So surely this is just one case? Most people can call their children their own? Well, depends on what you want to do. Every country has signed onto the idea that in the event that someone disagrees that a parenting method doesn’t line up with a child’s ‘best’ interests, they can take it to court. Once in court, it is now the state that decides what ‘best’ means, even though that doctor, or judge or guardian goes home and never deals with any of the consequences of their decision again.
And some countries don’t even need court. You may have heard of Child Protective Services (or other names that describe the same service, like Devil's Own Corrupt Spawn - I'm pretty sure this is what DOCS used to stand for in Australia?). On a basis of suspicion, with no court orders, no search warrants, no signed permits, these services are allowed to snatch children from their parents when they want to. We assume they would only do this in dire cases and so let them do their thing, but it is becoming common for kidnap to occur on very little grounds at all.
Here are some cases from around the world:
Chase Walker
Image Credit Australian National Review
Country:
Australia
This one happened in my own backyard and is unbelievable, except there is ample reason to believe it.
History:
Since receiving vaccinations (his medical records say he reacted to and seized for each of the 27 he was given until his parents said no more), Chase was diagnosed with an uncontrollable seizure disorder and cerebral palsy, and has been fed through a peg with a hospital formula called Nutrini and received regular anti-seizure medication. In hospital he was suffering from approximately 100 seizures a day, which had caused him to suffer significant brain damage, and the hospital told Cini and Mark to ‘go home and prepare for his funeral.’
Due to the fact that Chase’s condition had worsened in hospital care, his parents chose to replace his food with an organic, plant-based puree, as well as wean him off his seizure medications and replace them with legal treatment of cannabis oil, provided by Dr. Andrew Katelaris.
Within a few days of cannabis oil, his seizures decreased dramatically. Chase went from a hundred seizures a day, to having no more than four seizures a week, and sometimes went fifty days in a row seizure free. His parents reported he was now smiling, laughing, trying to speak and was attempting to hold objects for the first time since his 18-month vaccines.
The Conflict
The Lady Cilento Hospital staff seemed to resent this improvement. They claimed that Chase was at risk of cardiac arrest because he had lost some weight and was not receiving his prescribed synthetic hospital mush via his peg. The hospital compared Chase’s weight to that of a regular 4-year old boy as proof, although in a chart of 4 year old cerebral palsy boys, Chase was about average.
The hospital wanted Chase to go back to being fed Nutrini, placed back onto his meds that put him in a constant catatonic state, vaccinated up to date and no longer receive medical cannabis oil to stop the 100 seizures a day that would return.
Not such a hard ask, is it? Your son is improving, you must let us kill him.
The parents obviously declined, and NINE medical kidnapping attempts by the combined force of Lady Cilento Hospital and the Department of Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services were undertaken and TWO court hearings occurred, both of which ruled in clear favour of the parents due to Chase’s obvious improvement.
The Kidnap:
On Friday night, 19th of May 2017 (Friday night is a common theme for medical kidnap as legal help is harder to access), parents were called into hospital (John Hunter Hospital, as they’d moved states) over a (what seems like) false pathology result. Chase’s levels were apparently at a dangerous low, even though they were normal before, so his parents brought him in to get him checked. The doctor checked and reported his results were normal.
After this, the police stormed the hospital, locked the screaming father into the bathroom, dragged Chase out of his mother’s arms, then assaulted her, hand-cuffed her, dragged her out and arrested her, whilst pepper-spraying the family’s supporters (who always came to hospital with them because of the previous 9 attempted kidnappings). The mother was later dumped at her lodgings after police were told they had no grounds for arrest. It has been 7 weeks and Chase is still not reunited. A Change.org petition gathered 100,000 signatures to reunite Chase with his parents before it was shut off due to court gag orders.
Kidnappers:
Lady Cilento Hospital, the Department of Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services, NSW Police.
The Parent’s Crime:
Providing life-giving holistic, alternative medical treatment for their son.
The Bodnariu Family
Image Credit Christian Today
Country:
Norway
History:
Marius Bodnariu is a Romanian married to Ruth, a Norwegian. They moved to Norway 10 years ago to start a family there. The Pentecostal Christian pair met while volunteering with street children together.
Conflict
The school principal complained to child welfare services that the Bodnarius were "very Christian" and their belief that God punishes sin "creates a disability in the children." The principal believed the parents needed "guidance" from the government in raising their family. The principal also cited concerns over discipline in the family home, as occasional corporal punishment was used. But after physical examination of the children (the three-month-old was subjected to x-rays and a CT scan), no physical abuse was discovered.
The Kidnap:
Barnevernet (Norway child welfare service), took the two girls from school and didn’t alert the parents. Accompanied by police, they turned up at the family’s home and took the two older boys, leaving Ruth with three-month-old Ezekiel. The couple then visited the local police station to try to resolve the situation. The following day Barnevernet officials came to the home with four policemen, without any court orders or documentation, and seized the breast-fed baby as well. The older children who were all subjected to the devastating abuse of a spank or two were placed in foster homes hours away with few or no visitations (I’m sure being torn from their loving parents has greatly improved their life), but the parents were able to regain custody of their three-month old who was never spanked.
Kidnappers:
Barnevernet
The Parent’s Crime:
Being too Christian and occasional spanking.
(Norway’s Barnevernet has also been implicated in removal of hundreds of children for poor reasons such as ‘hand feeding (equated to force feeding), co-sleeping, ‘lack of eye contact’ and ‘pulling out a loose tooth’, which have inspired mass protests.)
Ruth Abigail Light
Image Credit Born in Sarasota
Country:
U.S.
History:
Baby Ruth was in breech position and her mother was recommended to give up homebirth and have a caesarean. Many doctors and midwives are trained to deliver a breech baby, but if a hospital doesn’t have one of these doctors, a caesarean is recommended. For whatever reason, the parents felt confident in their midwife-led homebirth and declined a caesarean.
Ruth was born at home on July 21st, 2010. She had some shoulder dystocia but once shoulders were free, she came right out. She seemed to be a bit distressed a few hours after birth so the parents decided to take her to the ER, and stayed a few days to have her monitored and tested. It was found her arms had nerve damage from her shoulders getting stuck. Since that time, Ruth had every test possible run and seemed to be doing very well. Her arms were recovering and she was a very content baby.
Conflict
Someone filed a complaint against the parents citing medical neglect for having her at home vs. the recommended C-section as she was breech.
The Kidnap:
The State of Illinois took her into custody as a result of the complaint and placed her in foster care for over a week. Parents were only allowed to see her twice for a couple of hours. As of Aug. 9th, she was placed with her grandparents and parents were allowed to see her for a few hours a day. This is outrageous, as it sets precedence for patients to fear denying a medical procedure, leaving informed consent impossible. Even if they made the poorer choice, how people can tear a baby away from a critical breastfeeding and bonding time with their mother, to ‘protect’ her from something that had already accidentally happened and couldn’t happen again, and assume this will benefit the baby, I do not know.
Kidnappers
State of Illinois
The Parent’s Crime:
Home birthing a breech baby that required medical treatment.
*I could not find a follow up source to see whether Ruth was returned to her parents or not.
Son of Danielle and Christian Holm (taken before he was named – the state has given him a name)
Image Credit Medical Kidnap
Country:
U.S.
History:
Hippy, gypsy-missionary-travelling, Christian couple (previously quite conventional – Danielle held a triple degree in biology, sociology and psychology, and her husband Christian was from a well-connected, well-off family) were pregnant and planning a husband-coached free birth due to being mistakenly told midwifery was illegal in Alabama, where they were camping. Danielle was concerned about some bleeding during labour so called an ambulance and was taken to Northeast Alabama Regional Medical Center.
Conflict
Hospital staff were suspicious because there was no fixed address, social security number was declined, and the parents didn’t want to do a birth certificate. Vaccinations were also denied. The couple sensed the staff were uncomfortable with this information, so Christian sought out a social worker to discuss it. Later the social worker returned with a DHR ((Alabama child protective services) intern and Chris asked, “What is the most simple way we can live without being harassed?” The DHR intern reportedly said she had never been asked this before, and that she would consult her supervisor.
The Kidnap:
The hospital social worker and the DHR intern returned to the hospital room with four police officers, a detective from the sheriff’s department, and a hospital security guard. Christian was escorted to another room, and the sheriff’s detective allegedly reached down and pulled the baby off Danielle’s breast where he was latched on (being a breastfeeding mother, to imagine this makes my heart ache with grief).
The detective told her that they had reason to believe that they were not who they said they were. He reportedly told her that the baby was now in state custody, and said their abundant ID documents could have been faked. The parents found out later they were most likely mistaken for two separate drug criminals, a Daniela Ruiz of Tuscon, Arizona, and a Richard Christian Holm of Nogales, Arizona (Christian’s full name is Christian Clarke Holm).
This case of mistaken identity should not have warranted a one day old baby being snatched from his mother’s breast, even if they were suspected. The hospital also vaccinated the baby against the couple’s strict wishes (they had already signed a legally binding form) and hospital orders were to feed it formula, even though Danielle pumped breastmilk. Danielle, a first time mother, was discharged without post-natal care. To know how deeply they cared about natural bonding, to a degree much higher than most people, makes this case all the more heinous.
Eight months later, the baby has still not been returned. I think this is the system trying to cover up a grievous error with subsequent petty accusations. Unnecessary court case after court case has dragged on, the couple defending all sorts of useless and non-applicable charges that the state is procuring. This is also about people who don’t want to live in the system and the system is punishing them cruelly.
Kidnappers:
Alabama Department of Human Resources, Regional Medical Hospital, police, sheriff detective, security guard.
The Parent’s Crime:
Being different.
In a U.S. vaccine forum that I comment on every now and then, I hear stories where CPS is called in for parents who refuse certain procedures. Often the parents are barred from the child’s ward room or not allowed in unless a social worker is present, and sometimes watch the humiliating assessments to check for physical and sexual abuse of the child. Sometimes for not wanting to give the child an antibiotic eye ointment within the first few minutes of being born. These stories are being posted close to once a week. This is not rare if you are 'different'.
I believe a stable family is highly beneficial to society. Keeping a family together reaps great rewards. Statistics show that children raised by a non-broken family are less likely to be raised in poverty, less likely to have drug addictions and psychiatric illnesses, less likely to be criminals later in life, and more likely to perform well academically. Despite this, because we must ‘PROGRESS’ from dark patriarchal oppression, we’ve seen the family structure break down, and it is more common for children to be part of a broken family than a traditional one. I think because it’s so normal, we’ve forgotten the importance of keeping a family together.
Image credit River Recovery Church
Due to this popular 'progressive and inclusive' culture, the state is used to ignoring strong data to suggest intact families are highly beneficial to children, and often thinks it knows better.
You might have read this post and thought “well, child kidnap will never happen to me.” I read these stories and said, “*$#%%^!! Those are all parenting choices I’VE made!” Home birthing, not vaccinating, being Christian, holistic medicine, being different. We are doing our best to stay out of the system to avoid interaction, but if my kid breaks a leg, I’m going to have to take them to a doctor at least.
I no longer feel safe to approach a hospital – they have child snatchers on shift 24/7, readily available to make conclusions based on suspicions and child theft based on no evidence. I’m reconsidering school. It only takes one teacher to make a false accusation, one arrogant social worker to decide they don’t agree with your parenting choices, only takes one doctor to be pissed off with you, and bam, you’re in court.
And once you’re in court, that Convention of Children’s Rights says the child belongs to the state.
You can go out with (state-approved) guns blazing, or you can go quietly (be assured you'll be issued a court gag order). Either way, you don't really have a choice.
It is with a heavy heart I warn you: our children SHOULD BE, but ARE NOT, OUR OWN.
Cuddle your snotty little bundles of chubby joy while you can, and pray for courage.
Keep questioning.
(And get yourself a lawyer on standby.)
This is important information that people need to be aware of.
Thank-you for writing about it.
There is so much corruption in the Social Services and foster care system. It is despicable, as from my experience with friends who have been harassed by them, they are NOT looking out for the child's best interests.
They will kidnap a child any chance that they can get, if they find a parent who is vulnerable that they can easily prey on.
Thank you for this article. It is in a great format to share with people who are upset about Charlie Gard. It will help them realize that this is not an isolated incident, but rather a systemic and worldwide problem.
It was too long to keep going, so many other stories! Certainly systemic 😢
See your post mentioned here
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STOP"It takes a village to raise a child"
Actually in the right context, I love this idea. A community that helps each other out, while acknowledging each child belongs to their own parents who bear the responsibility for their upbringing. The child learning bits and pieces from elders and people who specialise in certain areas, getting a rich education. Much lower post natal depression in this village model where mums can get a 5 minute toilet break and a chance to eat lunch.
But once you remove it from the original context, and turn the village into a governing body that owns the children, and everyone is forced to give money for authorities to use to raise the children in a limited, shallow education, so children contribute to society that best profits the authorities, and parents are forced to give up the right to raise their child as they see fit, then yes, scariest, most artificial, perverted model I can think of. Hilary Clinton or Hitler's models are really: It will be the village that raises your child or else.
If it takes a village, then parents are insufficient.
Also, great piece. Following you now.
Also, consider joining teamaustralia.
We're a great bunch, and if you use the #teamaustralia tag, @centerlink upvotes your post.
I am happy to admit that without help I am pretty insufficient. If my husband is at work for many hours, I need someone else around. If I had a village to help out, that would be great (I do not get the easy baby types), but as it is, I have to employ an assistant. When I lived with extended family, it was great, 7 other adults around for my kids to learn off and love and allow me to make dinner while they watched my kids. Without them, my kids experience would be less rich. So again, responsibility is key - help is useful and advantageous, but it's always our job to raise our kids no matter the help. With or without a village shouldn't add or take away from our ownership of our kids.
Also does Centrelink upvote your posts if you're outlining what a bad system Centrelink is? I mean they're just the workers, they don't make the entitlement laws, so my gripe is not with them totally, but I do wonder if they'd still upvote it.
It's not the real Centerlink. It's just the name they gave the autovoter for members of teamaustralia :)
Haha I get it.
Once they established they had the right to force education on your child, the precedent creeped into everything else. We need to get them out of our lives 100%!