There was a time when it was a good idea to teach children responsibility at a young age. But recently, a neighborhood of weirdos thought a young girl earning a little cash from her mom for doing chores was a crime.
In Woodinville, Wash., Christine Behar decided to post an advertisement for her 9-year-old daughter, Sarah, who was up for the task of helping neighbors with housework. She wanted to help with dishes, laundry, and making simple lunches if they needed it.
But six hours after Behar posted the ad on the neighborhood's website, she heard a knock on her door and that knock was from a police officer who was investigating her for violating child labor laws.
I know you’re asking, “This is a joke, right?” Nope, unfortunately it is not.
Behar’s neighbors called the authorities for fear that she may be abusing her child or working her to death.
"Apparently the ad generated multiple phone calls from paranoid neighbors thinking I was using my child as a slave," Behar told Reason.
The ad she posted reads:
Mother's Helper
Hello! My almost 10-year old is available as a mother's helper. She is the oldest of three and is quite capable. She can fold and put away laundry, sweep, set tables, clean dishes, take out the trash, make beds, vacuum, make light meals, and keep your kiddo busy. We are a homeschool family so she has a flexible schedule. Please message me if you are interested in meeting with us.
How horrendous this ad is! I can’t believe she would post such a thing -- NOT!
In a letter to Reason, Behar explained that the officer who came to her home seemed to be uncomfortable about the issue, knowing it was being pushed out of proportion:
“He was embarrassed and apologetic but said he had to do a welfare to check to make sure I wasn't running a sweat shop!” she stated. “You know I was thinking about it today—I was working in a church nursery with infants at nine years old, babysitting alone by 11, I had a paper route at 12, and was living on my own working almost full-time and going to college at 17. All those things would probably violate our state's child labor laws today. It's a shame that our culture has resorted to this paranoia. It's robbing our children of the pride that learning skills and hard work bring. I'm keeping the ad up.”
It’s good to see Behar won’t back down to her neighbors’ foolish complaints. She is clearly looking to help her daughter and her other two children grow up knowing what responsibility is. She explained how she and her husband accomplished this.
“We have always tried to raise them to be independent and let them play outside for hours in our family-friendly suburban neighborhood outside of Seattle, walk alone to the neighbors, and have taught them how to cook, clean, do laundry and other household chores that we deem age appropriate,” she wrote.
You know, it’s interesting the things our society wants to allow, or not allow, children to do. To stop a responsible child from doing something that will only improve their character is nonsense. Think about all the kids who become baby-sitters, or cut grass and shovel snow, are they child slaves? Clearly not! Should we stop them from learning something that will help them improve themselves for the future? No! Let the kids grow up — the right way — they’ll be just fine.