Reflecting in a piece for Essence on the allegations against the pastor Creflo Dollar, The Root's contributing editor Demetria L. Lucas says we have to realize that it's primitive to treat our children this way.
Creflo Dollar, founder and pastor of the Atlanta-based megachurch World Changers International, was arrested on Friday and charged with simple battery and child cruelty after he allegedly attacked his 15-year-old daughter …
Well into my teenage years, I got the belt and was hit, smacked and a whole lot more that would likely fall under current definitions of abuse.
I am not one of those adults who recall my parents’ discipline fondly, trades tales with laughter over how they used to wild out, or credits physical violence with making me a sensible adult. That was a difficult and painful aspect of my youth, one that obliterated my self-esteem, ability to trust others, and imbedded a rage within me that for many years I targeted toward others away from home.
Our collective cultural acceptance of beating our kids is not for their benefit or in their best interest. It’s primitive, a symptom of our own inability to handle frustration constructively. It is not okay to treat our children this way, nor should we sweep it under the rug when others allegedly do it too.
Read Demetria L. Lucas' entire piece at Essence.
The Root aims to foster and advance conversations about issues relevant to the black Diaspora by presenting a variety of opinions from all perspectives, whether or not those opinions are shared by our editorial staff.