The library gang

[ladyofastolat]

Quote of the day on the BBC news magazine:

"I am a member of Appledore library" - Devon teenager asked by New York social workers what street gang she was in.

I think this opens up a whole new world of possibilities in library marketing to teenagers...

EDIT: The above post was made before reading the story behind the quote.

Comments

[ladyofastolat.livejournal.com]

The thing that scares me most if wondering if this is the standard treatment for children in care. Children in care have a very raw deal in life, but the emphasis - at least over here - is on trying as hard as possible to give them as secure and comfortable a life as possible. They've often had a horrendous life through no fault of their own, so the thought that a place like this can even exist is pretty scary. Ditto to the scary hospital.

[parrot-knight.livejournal.com]

I suspect that it is the standard treatment, and that (from our no doubt liberal and cosseted British world view) denial of individual rights and comforts is routine in the New York system. It reminds me very much of what was caricatured in the musical Annie.

[ladyofastolat.livejournal.com]

If this is true, I find it horrifying. If the most vulnerable children in society are treated as little more than criminals, it's just barbaric. Our system is hardly great - I heard some pretty heartbreaking stories at a conference on "corporate parenting" (i.e. the idea that everyone working with "looked-after children" should strive to give them exactly the same chances as they would give their own children) - but it does at least try to work from the premise that none of this is the child's fault and first and foremost they need security and stability.