"I left my 9-year-old at Bloomingdale's a couple of weeks ago. … He came home on the subway and bus himself."
Soon, she would be implicitly accused of child abuse.
What began as ordinary musings for New York-based author Lenore Skenazy, quickly captured the nation's attention and catapulted the progressive parent and prolific writer into a pit of controversy.
In her column "Why I Let My 9-Year-Old Ride the Subway," Skenazy deconstructs the urban myths guiding society in its obsessive need to protect children from the evils surely lurking around every corner.
She defends herself against "hyper parents" and the head of a child safety organization. She culls data and talks to the experts.
The fruit of her labor is an effective attack on the notion that the "everything-is-dangerous" outlook is good for our children. In fact, she contends, quite the opposite is true. (The full article can be found on Lenore Skenazy's page.)
With her column, Skenazy sparked a flame that roared across the country, setting the nation's airwaves -- and her inbox -- afire. Originally published in the April 1 edition of The New York Sun, it immediately became the talk of the nation. By nightfall, "The Today Show" had called. In the next few days Skenazy would appear on Fox News, MSNBC and NPR's "Talk of the Nation." Now she's fielding calls from English newspapers, while her words circulate across Canada.
It's not just the news agencies that want a piece of her, though. Skenazy's inbox is bursting with parental protests to her polemic against overprotecting children. As Skenazy attacked status quo thinking on child safety, readers volleyed barbs of their own:
"Your opinions are exactly what they are -- opinions," wrote one reader. "Keep that in mind next time you send your 9-year-old on a stroll through downtown New York, you crazy..." Fill in the expletive.
Not all the messages exuded such hatred, but most exuded discontent:
"My 10-year-old is as smart and independent as they come," proclaimed one mother. "But I wouldn't burden her with the responsibility to survive on her own in the city, town or farmer's market, for that matter."
And the point-counterpoint continues, as Skenazy will devote an entire column next week to just such matters. Check back then, at www.creators.com.
"I left my 9-year-old at Bloomingdale's a couple of weeks ago. … He came home on the subway and bus himself."
