It must come as a shock to learn the despicable practice of child marriage is legal in the United States of America! Please see our story published today “Child marriage is still legal in the US”.

The article, written by Nicholas Syrett of the University of Kansas, claims “with parental consent it remains possible for minors to marry in every single state.”

“While the legal minimum marriageable age has gone up in almost all states since the 19th century, almost all states have exceptions built in that allow parents and/or judges to consent to the marriage of minors below the stated minimums, in some cases if they are pregnant, in others if they are already emancipated minors. This means that with judicial or parental consent, children as young as 10, 11 and 12 have been married in the U.S. in the last couple of decades. When exceptions are taken into consideration, 25 states actually do not have an absolute minimum marriageable age.”

On the website UNFPA it says:

Child marriage is a human rights violation. Despite laws against it, the practice remains widespread, in part because of persistent poverty and gender inequality. In developing countries, one in every four girls is married before reaching age 18. One in nine is married under age 15.

Child marriage threatens girls’ lives and health, and it limits their future prospects. Girls pressed into child marriage often become pregnant while still adolescents, increasing the risk of complications in pregnancy or childbirth. These complications are a leading cause of death among older adolescents in developing countries.

UNFPA promotes programmes and legislation designed to end child marriage. UNFPA supports evidence-based, girl-centred investments that empower girls with the information, skills and services they need to be healthy, educated and safe, helping them make a successful transition to adulthood. UNFPA also works to support the needs of married girls particularly in family planning and maternal health.

SOURCE: http://www.unfpa.org/child-marriage

Just because we live in the Cayman Islands it shouldn’t mean we should shake our heads and ignore it. I well remember when singer Jerry Lee Lewis married 13 year old Myra and landed in Britain to tour there was much outrage over it. It forced him to return home and his career in tatters. Even though he claimed Myra was 15. He thought that sounded mature enough.

Would there be the same outrage today as our standards of what is right when it comes who we marry have been considerably lowered?

In India 47% of all girls are married before their 18th birthday. Many are married at 14 and some even before they are teens.

Infants born to mothers under the age of 18 are 60% more likely to die in their first year than to mothers over the age of 19. If the children survive, they are more likely to suffer from low birth weight, malnutrition, and late physical and cognitive development.

Young girls in a child marriage are more likely to experience domestic violence in their marriages as opposed to older women. A study conducted in India by the International Centre for Research on Women showed that girls married before 18 years of age are twice as likely to be beaten, slapped, or threatened by their husbands and three times more likely to experience sexual violence. Young brides often show symptoms of sexual abuse and post-traumatic stress.

Only recently a victim of a child marriage in India had a miscarriage and was sentenced to prison for not properly caring for her unborn child. She claimed she had been raped!