𝜗𝜚 — why children can't consent .
𝜗𝜚 — a common theme I see , especially in radqueer and xenosatanism spaces is the debate on which if children can or cannot consent .
𝜗𝜚 — the simple answer is : no . children cannot consent .
𝜗𝜚 — now , you may be asking yourself , " why can't they consent ? they can obviously agree or disagree to things . " and that you'd be correct ! children have the mental capacity to agree and disagree with things , however , for starters , children do not have the mental capacity to fully understand the consequences of their actions and they do not have the full mental capacity to truly agree or disagree to something so big as sexual activity , and second , consent is so much more than just a yes or no .
𝜗𝜚 — " Based on age and development, children – even adolescents – cannot fully appreciate the nature and consequences of serious decisions, which is why many areas of law (general medical care, contracts, military service) do not ordinarily allow children to consent. " <- direct quote from harvard university .
𝜗𝜚 — " The law recognizes that children are developmentally not able to make decisions about some things, including when to engage in sexual behaviors. " <- direct quote from stopitnow.org
𝜗𝜚 — further more , for children , it's harder for them to distinguish the difference between consent and cooperation .
𝜗𝜚 — " Additionally, it is easy to confuse cooperation with consent. Cortney Fisher, a criminology and criminal justice professor at the University of Maryland, explains in her book: “Sexual activity that is prohibited by age or relationship is prohibited regardless of the force used against the child or the cooperation of the adolescent or child. Because of the nature of the crime, there is no legal scenario in which a child can “consent” to the activities. However, due to the nature of sexual abuse and sexual assault, some children may appear cooperative. Cooperation, or the appearance of cooperation, may never equal legal consent.” " <- direct quote from the innocent lives foundation .
𝜗𝜚 — " but children can consent ! they can consent to be given hugs and kisses and they can make choices ! " there's a difference between something small like giving your mother consent to hug you , and having sex . it's stupid to compare small things , like normal affection , to something as serious as sex . Yes , children can consent to more minor decisions , but sex is not a minor decision . there's a reason everyone makes such a big deal about " losing your virginity " , it's because sex is such a giant thing in both maturity and social settings .
𝜗𝜚 — tl dr : kids brains are too undevelped to fully understand the consequences of their actions , and therefore , cannot consent .
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