In America if a parent is caught so much as verbally reprimanding a child in a harsh tone they run the risk of being reported to Child Protective Services. However, in Britain, a parent can walk away from accusations of beatings with a leather belt as long as they are an immigrant:
Immigrants should be allowed to “slap and hit” their children because of a “different cultural context” when they are new arrivals in Britain, a High Court judge suggested yesterday.
Mrs Justice Pauffley indicated police and social services should make allowances for immigrant groups, as she heard an application from an Indian man alleged to have beaten his wife and seven-year-old son.
…The father denied ever using a belt to strike the child but admitted he would deliver a “slap or a tap” to “keep him disciplined”.
In her ruling the judge concluded: “I do not believe there was punitively harsh treatment of [the boy] of the kind that would merit the term physical abuse.
“Proper allowance must be made for what is, almost certainly, a different cultural context.
The judge in the case didn’t bother to worry about the father’s history of spousal abuse or the child’s testimony that he is often depressed. She simply took the man at his word because of his immigrant status.
When does cultural sensitivity go too far? For decades, affirmative action policies have set the precedent for treating different people groups, well, differently. Now there are western courts using the same screwed-up logic to determine which kids get to be beaten and which are forced into protective custody based on their cultural heritage?
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