Telling your child to hug or kiss a family friend or relative might seem like an innocent thing to do, but as this controversial meme points out, it could actually be giving your kids a dangerous message about the rules of consent.
“I am 5,” reads the meme’s message. “My body is my body. Don’t force me to kiss or hug.” It was posted on A Might Girl’s Facebook page alongside excerpts from an article titled “I don’t own my child’s body,” written by CNN writer and producer Katia Hetter. In it she argues that encouraging children to submit to unwanted affection is actually teaching them that their bodies do not belong to them, and that forcing them to touch people they don’t want to could actually leave them vulnerable to sexual abusers. The post has since been liked more than 88k times and shared by over 162k people. It’s also started a dialogue on what parents should and shouldn’t be teaching their children. What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.
This controversial meme has gone viral for its important message about children and consent
The post was inspired Katia Hetter’s post on CNN titled “I don’t own my child’s body”
In it she argues that forcing kids to show unwanted affection is teaching them that their bodies don’t belong to them, which could leave them vulnerable to abuse
The meme has started a dialogue about children and consent
A number of people agreed with the post and shared their own opinions and stories
Other people had different opinions however
And some shared their belief in the “hug, handshake or high five” option. What do you think?
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