Category: News

From the New Westminster Record, June 17, 2015

Dawn Black lobbies for change to spanking laws

Former MP and MLA Dawn Black is part of a committee urging the federal government to change the Criminal Code to prohibit spanking.

Former New Westminster MLA and MP Dawn Black is fighting to change the Criminal Code so spanking is no longer allowed.

Black is part of a committee that’s seeking to repeal the section of the Criminal Code that permits the hitting of children.

“I worked on it in the House of Commons and pushed for it,” Black told the Record. “A friend of mine is a parenting expert who has had this on the side of her desk for a number of years. She has now retired and has decided to put more effort into it and put together a committee. She asked me to help with it.”

Black said research shows that spanking doesn’t work as a parenting tool and can be harmful to kids.

“The research is rock solid. It doesn’t work and it can be harmful. So why would you keep doing that?” she said. “Why would you have it in your own Criminal Code? It’s like a statement – our country says it’s OK to hit kids. I don’t think that’s good.”

According to Black, nearly 50 countries have banned the hitting of children, but Canada and the United states are “behind the times” where laws are concerned. At a time when society is trying to model non-bullying behaviour, she said it’s time to change the law.

“It used to be in the Criminal Code that you could hit your wife, you could hit your apprentice, you could hit your slave, you could hit a variety of people,” she said. “The only one that’s left there is that you can hit your children.”

Black said the recent Truth and Reconciliation Commission recommended that Section 43 of the Criminal Code be repealed, as a result of the physical discipline and abuse that occurred at residential schools. Section 43 is the section of the Criminal Code that permits spanking.

“It’s hard to get governments to move,” she said. “There are people who will tell you ‘I got hit as a kid, it didn’t hurt me.’ People model the behavior their parents had, which is one of the things to come out of the truth and Reconciliation Commission –  generational damage goes down three or four generations because people model the way they were raised.”

http://tinyurl.com/ol7tnca

June 17, 2015

Raffi joins Corinne’s Quest to work for an end to the physical punishment of children.

Raffi Cavoukian, world-renowned Canadian troubadour and author, has agreed to join the steering committee of Corinne’s Quest—an organization dedicated to helping parents discover positive, nonviolent ways to raise responsible self-disciplined children.

In announcing his support, Raffi noted that the goals of Corinne’s Quest – to end physical punishment of children and to advocate for enlightened and nonviolent parenting styles – have long been part of his Child Honouring philosophy.

“The principles that underlie my Covenant for Honouring Children include Conscious Parenting and Nonviolence,” said Raffi. “I am honoured to join in helping Corinne’s Quest to provide a safer, more enlightened and violence-free future for Canada’s children.”

“We are making this announcement near Father’s Day because of the critical role fathers play in child-rearing. It is also a time when all parents can reflect on this important job and consider their parenting styles,” he said.

Raffi founded the Centre for Child Honouring Centre on Salt Spring Island, BC in order to advance Child Honouring as a universal ethic and an organizing principle for societal transformation.

Kathy Lynn, parenting speaker, author and life-long advocate for ending the physical punishment of children, chairs Corinne’s Quest. The organization is named in honour of Corinne Robertshaw, a lawyer who dedicated her life to seeking repeal of Section 43—a part of Canada’s criminal code that permits the hitting of children under certain circumstances.

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For information on Corinne’s Quest, visit www.corinnesquest.ca

For information on Raffi and Child Honouring, visit www.childhonouring.org

Media contacts:

Kathy Lynn — 604-258-9074

Kim Wiltzen (for Raffi) – kwiltzen@sentex.net, 519-787-1234

 

Group hails Truth & Reconciliation Commission for calling on government to repeal Section 43, which permits hitting children

“We are delighted to hear that the Truth and Reconciliation Commission has recommended repeal of Section 43 of the Criminal Code as one of its 94 recommendations,” said Kathy Lynn, chair of a group which is dedicated to ending physical punishment of children in Canada.

“The injury and harm which came to generations of First Nations children in residential schools, which was condoned and permitted under this section of the criminal code, brings international shame to our country,” said Lynn.

“The Government of Canada should heed the recommendation of the Commission and hear the voices of millions of Canadians who want to repeal this section of the criminal code. There is no political downside, no costs involved. Simply repeal Section 43,” she said.

We commend the TRC for giving high priority to this recommendation. This would put Canada among the more than 40 countries that have banned physical punishment of children.

“This is something the government can do easily and immediately,” she said. As Justice Sinclair stated, words are not enough. If government were to take this action tomorrow it would show they are serious about moving forward on the recommendations of the TRC in a decisive manner.

At various times in Canada, laws have permitted hitting slaves, servants, apprentices, prisoners, wives, dogs and children. Because of Section 43, children are the only ones left on that list.

Kathy Lynn is the chair of Corinne’s Quest, an organization dedicated to helping parents discover positive, not-violent ways to raise responsible self-disciplined young adults. They are also committed to the repeal of Section 43 of Canada’s criminal code, which permits hitting of children under certain circumstances. The organization is named in honour of Corinne Robertshaw, a lawyer who dedicated her life to seeking repeal of Section 43.

For information on Corinne’s Quest, see their website at corinnesquest.ca

For more information you may contact:

Kathy Lynn, chair, at 604-258-9074

 

“We are delighted to hear that the Truth and Reconciliation Commission has recommended repeal of Section 43 of the Criminal Code as one of its 94 recommendations,” said Kathy Lynn, chair of a group which is dedicated to ending physical punishment of children in Canada.

“The injury and harm which came to generations of First Nations children in residential schools, which was condoned and permitted under this section of the criminal code, brings international shame to our country,” said Lynn

“The Government of Canada should heed the recommendation of the Commission and hear the voices of millions of Canadians who want to repeal this section of the criminal code. There is no political downside, no costs involved. Simply repeal Section 43,” she said.

We commend the TRC for giving high priority to this recommendation. This would put Canada among the more than 40 countries that have banned physical punishment of children.

“This is something the government can do easily and immediately,” she said. As Justice Sinclair stated, words are not enough. If government were to take this action tomorrow it would show they are serious about moving forward on the recommendations of the TRC in a decisive manner.

At various times in Canada, laws have permitted hitting slaves, servants, apprentices, prisoners, wives, dogs and children. Because of Section 43, children are the only ones left on that list.

Kathy Lynn is the chair of Corinne’s Quest, an organization dedicated to helping parents discover positive, not-violent ways to raise responsible self-disciplined young adults. They are also committed to the repeal of Section 43 of Canada’s criminal code, which permits hitting of children under certain circumstances. The organization is named in honour of Corinne Robertshaw, a lawyer who dedicated her life to seeking repeal of Section 43.

Ms. Joyce Murray (Vancouver Quadra, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, I rise in the house today to draw attention to a serious issue that has affected the lives of far too many Canadians, the physical punishment of children.

This hurtful practice effects the cognitive, emotional and physical development of kids and can result in lifelong repercussions.

Shockingly, section 43 of the Canadian Criminal Code still permits this cruel form of punishment; an archaic flaw in our legal system to say the least. Meanwhile, over 40 countries around the world have banned the physical abuse of children.

Federal civil servant, Corinne Robertshaw, became concerned about reports of child injuries and deaths caused by parents and caregivers, and dedicated her life to repealing section 43.

An advocacy group called Corinne’s Quest was started in her name. I want to thank Vancouver Quadra constituents Barbara Claridge and steering committee chair Kathy Lynn for their work on this important cause.

I invite all parliamentarians to work together towards ending the physical punishment of children on behalf of the health and well-being of Canadian children today and future generations.

Hitting children has been totally discredited as a legitimate means of disciplining children, and Pope Francis should know that.

“His statement last week that ‘It’s okay to spank your children to discipline them – as long as their dignity is maintained’ is totally out of tune with the times, and we were gratified that his own sex abuse commission called him out on it,” said Kathy Lynn.

“It is absolutely outrageous that the spiritual leader of 1.2 million Catholics world-wide would advocate violence against another human being. That is a totally inappropriate message for him to deliver to his flock.”

Kathy Lynn, a life-long advocate for ending physical punishment for children, is the chair of the steering committee for Corinne’s Quest which is a campaign under First Call: BC Child and Youth Advocacy Coalition, a non-partisan coalition of organizations which advocates for improved policies and resources for children and youth.

Our initial response through social media was that it’s disappointing that a person of such influence would be so unaware of the research that absolutely proves hitting children always carries a risk factor. To date, 44 countries have prohibited physical punishment of children because the risks include higher rates of aggression, delinquency, mental health problems and lowered self-esteem. Canada is not on that list of countries.

The Pope should look to the existing research before speaking on the topic. Thankfully, his sex abuse commission criticized his comments saying “there is no place for physical discipline and that the panel would make recommendations to him about protecting kids from corporal punishment.”

One of our concerns is that people will heed the first incorrect statement and miss the second refuting the value of physical punishment of children.
As the Spiritual leader for one seventh of the world population, the Pope has a responsibility to check his facts and talk to his advisors before he advises parents on an important topic such as physical punishment of children.

First Call: BC Child and Youth Advocacy Coalition has announced the affiliation of a new campaign focused on ending physical punishment of children.

Called Corinne’s Quest in honour of Corinne Robertshaw, a lawyer who dedicated the latter part of her life to this issue, the organization’s mission statement is “to promote the raising of children in a positive, non-violent manner and to press for repeal of Section 43 of the Criminal Code.”

“We are delighted to have Corinne’s Quest bring new energy and focus to our efforts to protect children’s right to safety and freedom from violence,” said Adrienne Montani First Call’s provincial coordinator. “Canada has been repeatedly criticized by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child for failing to remove this section of the Criminal Code. Numerous other countries have already moved on this. It’s time for Canada to catch up.”

Kathy Lynn, a parenting speaker and lifelong advocate for ending physical punishment of children, chairs the Corinne’s Quest Steering Committee.

Lynn points out that at various times in our history, Canadian laws have sanctioned hitting slaves, apprentices, prisoners, dogs, wives and children. “Today in Canada, children are the only group left on that list. It is a breach of both their right to security and to equality to have Section 43 still providing a legal defence for the use of force to ‘correct’ children’s behavior.”

She said in addition to the repeal of Section 43, the group also intends to support education for families and parents about the many progressive and effective non-violent ways to raise their children to be responsible self-disciplined adults.

“We are honoured to have an organization of the status of First Call accept us as a campaign under their wing,” said Lynn. “We recognize the Coalition has been a long-time champion of this issue and we’re excited about working together with all the First Call partner organizations and allies across the country to improve children’s safety.”

Sunday morning is special because I receive a message from Mary Charleson who is a marketing educator, speaker and strategist and author of Five-Minute Marketing.

Today she focused on Super Bowl ads and the one that struck me was Dove Men plus Care “Real Strength”.

In September 2014, the discussion about physical punishment of children had a different twist.

After NFL football star Adrian Peterson used a branch to beat his child the question of whether any parent should ever use physical means to discipline hit the airwaves. The action, which he called a whooping and assumed was appropriate discipline resulted in injuries to the back, hands, buttocks, ankles, legs and scrotum of his four year old child. The bulk of the discussion on social media suggested that physical punishment is not quality parenting.

As a result of this event the role of elite athletes as loving parents took the forefront. And today The Super Bowl is going to feature loving and caring Dads.

The Super Bowl is definitely a macho event featuring big strong men. Football is not for wusses.

But off the field these men can be caring Dads.

I am a parenting speaker and author and know that it is never appropriate to hit a child for any reason whatsoever. We proudly talk about being a peaceful nation, about having zero tolerance toward all violence. How can we then permit any form of violence against our children?

Physical punishment is never discipline, it is punishment, and it is punitive. It is defined as the use of physical force with the intention of causing a child to experience pain but not injury for the purposes of correction or control of the child’s behavior.

It always carries a risk. The research shows that hitting children increases the risk of physical injury, impaired parent/child relationship, child aggression, delinquency and poor child mental health.

It also doesn’t work. Hitting children is not an effective way to teach children right from wrong.